Innocent Castings
by ElricSisters7
Summary: Kanda and Allen get sent on a long-term mission to defeat a mysterious new Noah. This alone could spell disaster, even without having to deal with magical allies, and a secret crush on our favorite samurai. Eventual Yullen.
1. A Troublesome Partner

CH1

A/N- Hello everyone! This is Ali, but no Kay this time. This fic will be from just yours truly aside from maybe some editing and ideas from Kay. -Man isn't really her manga/anime. And, no, this doesn't mean we're dropping 3 Worlds, but real life (mostly school and evil homework) intrudes, and whenever we get time to work together, we're usually too fried to think about anything other than putting on an anime and zoning out.

A little background for the story: it begins soon after the incident on the ark. Everyone has healed and innocences have been repaired. Leverrier is running a bit late and has not put in an appearance yet. The time periods of Harry Potter and -Man have been somewhat merged together, but it shouldn't come up often seeing as the wizarding world is fairly similar as far as technology is concerned to the -Man time period.

Disclaimer: I do not own –Man or Harry Potter, as much as I really wish I did.

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**Kanda's POV**

I knew it was bad news when the finder interrupted my meditation with a panicked look on his face, handed me a message, and fled without a backward glance. Normally the finders are a spineless lot who are terrified of me, but most of them have gotten good enough not to show it so blatantly. I dismissed the thought with a "che" and unfolded the paper, fully expecting to not like what I saw. As per usual, my expectations were correct. The note bore a simple message "_Come see me in my office, Komui_."

"What does that idiot have up his sleeve this time?" I mumbled under my breath.

I grabbed Mugen from where he rested against the wall in case I might need him (I would hardly put it past Komui to have a few Komurin lurking in his office) and stalked out into the hall. My normally cold demeanor was icier at that moment because I was pissed. As such, anyone within my path parted like the Red Sea before Moses, leaving me a quick walk with no human interaction, just how I liked it.

When I reached the Supervisor's office, I could hear shouting inside. Something along the lines of the science section workers being scolded for falling asleep again. _Che, how annoyingly loud_, I thought, and made my entrance by slamming open the door.

"Ah, Kanda-kun," Komui addressed me, readjusting his glasses. "Come in and sit down." He then made shooing motions at the science guys with his hands. They scampered from the room, although their speed was more due to my presence than Komui's little shooing motions.

I gave Komui a glare upon noticing the condition of his couch, the only seating in the room. It was covered in heaps of documents. I gave the documents a glare too before sweeping them off onto the floor and dropping onto the couch.

"Kan-nda!" Komui whined. I glared at him again. His whining gets on my nerves. "I just got all of those nicely organized!"

"Shouldn't have left them on the couch then."

"But there's no room anywhere else!"

"Che. Tell me what you wanted me here for, or I'm going away."

"Ah, yes," Komui said, all seriousness again. It's sometimes scary how quickly he can change his demeanor like that. He dug through the papers on his desk for a moment and brought out a file. He handed it to me before beginning again. "I have a new mission for you. We have discovered a new Noah, the Noah of Survival it seems. Your mission is to take him out. This will most likely be a long term mission, seeing as sources say this target is a tough one."

At that moment, the door creaked open behind me. I didn't pay it any notice. Probably just another science guy crawling in here with things for Komui to sign.

"Perfect timing," Komui addressed the person behind me. "I was just briefing Kanda on your new mission."

That got my attention. '_Your_ new mission' couldn't mean anything good. I could feel my temper rising. Partner missions were bad, I preferred to work alone. But I could usually go on a mission without massacring the other exorcist, usually. The exception to that…

"Come in and take a seat Allen-kun," Komui told him, digging up another file.

"No way in hell," I stated flatly. "I am not going on a mission with the moyashi. No."

"Who says I want to go on a mission with you baKanda?" Allen replied.

"You don't want to, I refuse. There's a difference."

"Then you have no sense of duty."

"Of course I have a sense of duty," I snapped, steaming. I wasn't actually that concerned about a sense of duty, but the moyashi just had a talent for riling me up.

"No you don't. You just want to be able to kill something," Allen snapped back. I glared at him with as much force as I could muster. He glared back. You could practically see the sparks fly.

"Stop bickering like an old married couple," Komui teased.

"What did you say?" Allen and I said, turning the wrath of our glares on Komui, who promptly hid behind his desk.

"Nothing, nothing," the Supervisor squeaked, the top of his beret just peaking out from around the side of his desk. He waited a moment before reemerging and proceeding as if nothing had happened. "Like I said, you two are aiming to take out the Noah of Survival. It won't be easy; he's not called that for nothing. Sources say he is extremely frightened of death, and has even taken measures _beyond_ the Noah regeneration ability to stay alive.

"This one's also unique in the sense that he has human followers in addition to Akuma."

"What? That can't be true! Humans would never willingly follow a Noah!" Allen cried out.

"Che," I mumbled in annoyance. Allen was too concerned about the humans for my taste. Humans, Akuma, I'm just fine killing either.

Komui cleared his throat and pressed on as if we had never interrupted him. "Some of our allies have actually fought this Noah and his followers, and have been surprisingly successful. They've been able to eliminate some of his human followers, of course none of the Akuma because they are not exorcists. You will both be staying with these allies seeing as the Noah has been concentrating his attacks on this group. The rest of the vital information, including train tickets, is in your files. Toma will accompany you until you can meet with our allies. You will need to leave within the hour. You may go."

I stood up, turned sharply and stomped to the door. I marched back toward my room, once again anyone in my path wisely fleeing for dear life. "Che, this is annoying," I muttered, slamming my door behind me. My exorcist uniforms were the unfortunate victims of my wrath as I shoved them ruthlessly into my suitcase, dropped the mission file on top, and slammed the case closed. I was ready to leave. Joy.

**Allen's POV**

I locked my bedroom door and hit my head against it, hard. "Ouch," I mumbled without much feeling, and left my head leaning against the wood. Timcampy, who was curious as to why I started slamming myself into things, fluttered over and began chewing on my hair. "I'm OK, Tim," I reassured the golum before gently detangling him from my silver locks. The last time I let him chew on my hair for any length of time, I ended up with a rather unfortunate bald spot.

Truth was, OK wasn't exactly the right word. The mission was fine, Komui had already informed me of it the day before, save the pleasantness about humans siding with the Noah:

_"Allen, I would like to talk to you for a moment," Komui said as I walked past his office._

_I retraced my steps. "What is it?"_

_"Come in, I have a mission for you."_

_I entered his office and sat down, trying not to disturb the large piles of paper precariously perched on his couch. I was a little puzzled as to why I was being sent on a mission. I thought I was still in trouble because of the Ark incident._

_Komui noticed my confusion. "Some of the big-shots at the Vatican have been sniffing around, particularly the incident involving the Marian Cross and Froi Tiedoll protection teams. They seem especially interested in your involvement. I expect this to be a long-term mission, and hopefully by the time you come back, things will have calmed down," he explained._

_"You will be working alongside a longstanding ally of ours to defeat a new Noah we have recently discovered, the Noah of Survival. As this is a long term mission, you will be staying with our ally, at a school for magic he runs. While you are there, you will be enrolled as a student and learn to use magic. It could potentially be a great advantage for us."_

_"But how can I learn magic? As far as I know, I'm not a wizard," I pointed out politely._

_"We have discovered through research that innocence has the ability to conduct magic, but only for parasitic types, so consider yourself lucky."_

_Komui shuffled the papers on his desk and pulled out a file stuffed so full of papers that they threatened to burst free at any second. "This is information you need to know about the wizarding world." He handed it to me and I nearly dropped it; it was heavy. "You are free to go, but come back tomorrow at the same time to receive your ordinary mission file. Oh, and don't forget to study."_

_I turned and walked to the door, but as I put my hand on the knob, Komui added, "And one more thing, Allen. This has the potential to become very dangerous, so you will have to have a partner."_

_I nodded and thanked Komui. I flipped through the file in my hand absently, not really reading the words, instead wondering who my partner would be._

No, it wasn't the mission that had me upset; it was Komui's choice of partner. Kanda, it just had to be Kanda. What made it worse was I could completely see the logic. Kanda was the perfect choice because of his strength, which we would need because our opponent was hard to kill. There was no one else he could send. Crowly was passed out, Miranda wasn't very good for offense, Noise was set to be sent off on another mission, the higher-ups wanted Cross kept here for surveillance, Lenalee still couldn't synchronize properly, and Lavi, well, Lavi just wasn't serious enough for a mission of this gravity.

I hit my head against the door again, secretly harboring the hope that if I knocked myself out, I would wake up and the whole issue of Kanda being my partner would just be a dream. Tim fluttered nervously around my head before tugging on my hair again, as if to say 'come away from that door before you give yourself a lovely bruise.'

I relented and walked across the room, only to slump down on my bed and turn on my side so I could stare at the picture on the wall. "What would you do, Mana?" I asked, knowing there would be no reply. I wished he would, I could use the guidance. I had no clue how to deal with all of this. I could manage easily if the concern was constant bickering with Kanda; if only it was that easy.

My hate for him had strangely transformed into something else, but entirely one sided. My dislike for him had turned to grudging admiration of his ability as an exorcist after our first mission together. Then, the more I watched him fight, the more I realized how beautiful he looked with Mugen in his hands. His grace and power and how he nearly became one with the blade was mesmerizing. The way his muscled yet still slender limbs and body would twist and move in a pattern dance was… more than mesmerizing. Admiration had become something more akin to attraction.

While on the Ark, I was so worried when he made us leave him behind to fight Skin Bolic, and in turn so relieved that I had nearly cried when he came back alive. Now, don't get me wrong, he still managed to strike a nerve most of the times I spoke to him, but my anger to him didn't feel quite so intense anymore, and I never stayed upset for long. Perhaps because there was something overshadowing that anger and pushing it back. Those sort of feelings weren't what I thought were associated with attraction, but no, I couldn't possibly be in _love_ with the prickly samuri, could I? No, it was completely impossible. I was attracted to him, that's all… severely attracted.

Yes, I was severely attracted to Yuu Kanda, who I knew would never return my feelings. If they were ever expressed, I would be lucky if I just got sliced to bits by Mugen. So, I hate to say it, but I hid from him. Whenever I saw him I got this feeling of… severe attraction, and it only served to remind me that these feelings toward him would never lead to anything. And I was always afraid that if I was around him, some my feelings might somehow show on my face through my fake, yet polite, smile.

However, on a mission together there was no way I could avoid him. We would have to plan together, and potentially even fight together, and in either situation I foresaw disaster.

I sighed, and reminded myself that this was a mission. There was no backing out, it was my job, no my duty, and I wanted to do it… just not with Kanda. _It has to be done_ told myself, and then repeated it again several times like a mantra for good measure. After a few moments I forced myself to get off of the bed and begin packing my bag, resigned to my fate.

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A/N- Cookies to anyone who can figure out who the Noah of Survival is. As always, reviews are welcome, but no flames please, only constructive criticism. Thanks!


	2. Welcome to Hogwarts

CH2

A/N: Here is chapter 2. Sorry it took so long to post this.

Props to everyone who guessed who the Noah of Survival is. A ton of you did.

Disclaimer: I'm still not the author of Harry Potter, or -Man. *Sigh*

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**Allen's POV**

I picked up my suitcase, albeit a bit reluctantly, and closed my door, remembering to lock it behind me. Last time I left it open, I caught Lavi snooping around in there when I came back. Honestly, he's too curious for his own good. I wouldn't put it past him to pick the lock anyway.

Speak of the devil; Lavi was standing right in front of me when I turned around. I hate to admit I jumped a bit.

"Where are you going? I thought you were still in trouble," he said, his single green eye twinkling. There was nothing Lavi loved more than trouble.

"I've got a mission," I replied, and walked off down the corridor.

"Ooh, I sense something interesting here," he said, easily keeping pace with me.

"No, just a mission. A few Akuma, maybe a Noah, nothing big." Lavi just gave me a look, the one that said 'I'm a bookman, I know almost everything and what I don't know, I'll make you tell.' I ignored it, hoping that just this once he might let it drop, but this was Lavi we were talking about.

He took two long steps ahead and turned around so he was blocking my path. "It must be dangerous. It's dangerous, isn't it? I'll fear for you every second you are gone," he said in his most overdramatic voice.

I could only roll my eyes and give in. He wouldn't leave me alone until he found out. "I'm being sent off to fight a new Noah," I told him, and then added after a moment's pause, "but I think that might be confidential, so don't tell anyone."

"Are you saying I'm not the most trustworthy person you've ever met? I'm hurt."

I continued walking without reply. He was silent for a moment, before saying, all traces of antics gone, "That's not all, is it?"

Damn his perceptiveness. "Kanda's my partner on this mission."

"Ooh, I'm sorry little buddy." At first I thought he just meant he was sorry I had to deal with Kanda, until he continued, "that's got to be hard, seeing as you like him and all."

It took a moment for that statement to make its way to my brain. When it did, I stopped in my tracks. "_What_?"

"I _said_ 'that's got to be hard...'"

"I heard you," I cut him off, "don't say it again. How do you know?"

"It's pretty obvious. They way you look at him now, it's totally changed."

I blanched. The words "pretty obvious" echoed through my head, making me feel dizzy, and slightly nauseous. _Obvious!_? It couldn't be… right? I thought the mask of indifference and annoyance I showed around Kanda was perfect. Was I actually showing some other emotion around him? Had _everyone_ noticed?

Seeing me go pale and sway dangerously on the spot, Lavi quickly reassured me, "No one else has noticed of course, except for maybe gramps. But we're bookmen. Being overly observant is our specialty."

The knot in my throat that I hadn't noticed was there loosened and I breathed a sigh of relief. The _last_ thing I needed was for it to get around the Order that I was… severely attracted to Kanda. While many of the members of the Order itself were more accepting of all types of lifestyles, the Vatican itself was not exactly in favor of nonconventional relationships. I started walking again, reminding myself I was supposed to be at the underground river soon.

Lavi easily kept pace with me. "You have to write me once you get there. I want to know all about this school of magic you're going to! Gramps and I have never been able to get into one before to make observations, so you'll have to do it for me, 'K?"

"Hang on, I never told you where I was going."

"I'm a bookman," he replied, like that explained everything. In fact, it kind of did. "And if you make observations for me, in exchange I might be willing to give you advice on your little 'relationship' issues."

I flushed scarlet. "Re…relationship? There is no relationship, none, and I wouldn't be having issues with it if there was!"

"Sure _moyashi_. If you say so. This is where I leave you," he added, as we approached the stairs down to the underground river. I could see Kanda and Toma at the bottom, waiting for me. Kanda was, as per usual, wearing his near-permanent scowl. Lavi gave a little wave and trotted off back down the corridor. I took a deep breath and forced myself to walk down those stairs.

"You're late moyashi," was Kanda's way of greeting me. I made a point of ignoring him as I stepped into the waiting boat. _He_ made a point of sitting as far away as the craft would allow. Toma, who had been on missions with the two of us before and was used to our behavior, remained completely unfazed. He stepped into the front of the boat and began poling it off down the river. Thus began our mission together.

**Kanda's POV**

The boat and subsequent train ride with the moyashi had been nearly bearable. This was due to the fact that he said nothing to me and I said nothing to him. What was not so bearable was the mission folder from Komui. It contained detailed documents about the mission, mostly the general information about where we were going… the wizarding world. The whole thing seemed ridiculous to me, waving a wand and getting anything you wanted without even having to try. Real life didn't work like that. Komui was obviously playing a very elaborate joke, and it got on my nerves.

Glancing up, I could see the moyashi buried in his own, much thicker folder as if he was trying to memorize every word printed on the multiple pages. Che, the idiot. He probably actually believed this stuff was real.

It had grown dark outside, so when the train finally slowed to a stop, it was impossible to see where we were out the window. The only thing visible was a tiny platform illuminated by a single lantern. Toma lit another as we descended from the train.

"Master Kanda, Master Walker, follow me please," he stated and started off into the darkness. I walked up next to the finder instead; I followed no one. Behind me I could hear the moyashi's light footsteps.

I began to feel uneasy after walking for a while without seeing any lights or other signs of human life in the forest. I moved my hand to Mugen's hilt, alert for a trap or attack. Soon after, we emerged from the thick forest, the trees giving way to a grassy slope leading upward to a hill, topped by the crumbling ruins of a castle. My suspicions about this entire thing being a joke were confirmed when Toma halted at the base of the hill, and told us we had to wait here. There was no way that place could be a school.

It was only a few moments before he said, "Here comes your escort now. I shall take my leave." I scanned the area, but there was not another soul in sight. Toma bowed deeply to Allen and me before retreating into the forest.

I could feel a muscle in my eye twitch. This was taking the joke too far. Talking of invisible escorts and leaving us there? I glanced back at moyashi to see what his reaction was. He didn't even look concerned at all. Instead, he was staring up at the old ruin with something akin to awe on his face. I was convinced; the Ark incident did manage to drive him crazy after all.

I turned back to face the ruin in time to see an older woman materialize from thin air. She wore a stern look on her face, had her grey hair pulled back in a tight bun, and wore what looked like an oversized black bathrobe. I was NOT startled, just… wary. I drew Mugen and held him in the ready position, prepared to attack if need be.

"BaKanda," said moyashi from behind me. "She's our escort. Didn't you see her coming down from the castle?" I hadn't.

"Put that thing away," the woman said, looking disapprovingly at Mugen. I gave her an award-winning scowl. _No one_ told me when to put away my weapon. She seemed completely unfazed. After a moment, I lowered Mugen but did not put him away. "As you rightly assumed," she nodded to the moyashi, "I am to escort you to see the headmaster. My name is Minerva McGonagall. I teach transfiguration at the school."

I raised an eyebrow, I still didn't see a school, and stated as much.

"Ah yes, I was informed that you are a muggle, Mr. Kanda. In fact, you will be the first muggle to ever knowingly set foot on Hogwarts grounds." McGonagall looked as if she did not approve of the idea. "However, the headmaster has seen fit to allow it, so accommodations must be made." She drew a thin wooden stick from within the large sleeve of her robes. I immediately raised Mugen again, wondering if it was some sort of weapon. She waved the stick, and I felt a strange tingling sensation pass over my body.

"Now do you see it?" asked the moyashi in a teasing tone. I shot him a quick death glare before looking up at the old ruin. It was not a ruin anymore, but a large castle in perfect repair. Windows twinkled with golden light against the dark outline of the building, and many high towers pointed their fingers toward the sky. Just behind McGonagall had appeared a massive gate, flanked by pillars topped with the statues of flying boars.

"If you will follow me, I will now take you to meet our headmaster, Professor Dumbledore." McGonagall turned toward the gates, and they swung open before her.

The moyashi immediately ran after, still staring up at the castle in awe. I spared it one more glance and sheathed Mugen before stalking off to catch up. Che, so this whole thing wasn't a joke after all. How annoying.

McGonagall strode across the massive lawn and passed a lake, black water gently lapping at the shore in the dark, before the three of us reached the front doors of the castle. They were massive, almost as tall as the doors to headquarters. Once again, they swung open before McGonagall to show a long hall with high vaulted ceilings that led to a large marble staircase.

We climbed the large staircase followed by several smaller ones which moved at inconvenient moments. The subjects of portraits lining the long, stone hallways moved in their frames and into others, following us, whispering. Neither of these phenomenons bothered me; I'd been around enough innocence to be used to strange occurrences. I figured there must be a lot of it in the building. The chattering of the paintings was starting to get on my nerves though. I caught the word "muggle" several times. I didn't know what it meant, but I doubted it was good, and I could feel a twitch forming in my eye.

The next time I heard the word I whirled around to glare at the painting that had whispered it. "What are you looking at?" I snapped. The two gossiping nuns on the canvas fled into the adjacent picture. "What are they even calling me?" I asked sullenly.

"A muggle," McGonagall said, stopping in front of the statue of a gargoyle. "It means someone who cannot perform magic." She then turned to the gargoyle and said "Chocolate Frog." The gargoyle stepped aside to reveal a spiral staircase with steps lazily moving upward. McGonagall climbed onto the staircase, and indicated we should do the same. At the top of the staircase was a wooden door. She knocked on the door with a brass knocker shaped like some mythical creature. The door swung open to show an old wizard with long white hair and beard surveying us over his glasses.

"Come in," he said. McGonagall ushered us into the room and then took her leave, the door clicking shut behind her. "Won't you please have a seat?" The wizard, I assumed he was Dumbledore, indicated a pair of chairs in front of his desk. They were clear of any piles of papers and reports.

The moyashi and I took the offered seats.

"We are honored to welcome you to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry," said Dumbledore, "And we thank you for coming to our aid in this time of need."

"The honor is ours," said the moyashi, always overly polite. I frowned at his inclusion of me in this statement.

"You must be wondering why I have asked you here," Dumbledore stated. I opened my mouth to say I already knew, but he continued on, either not noticing, or intentionally ignoring me. I crossed my arms and scowled. "Fourteen years ago, a powerful and evil wizard by the name of Lord Voldemort disappeared in his attempt to kill an infant boy by the name of Harry Potter. Incidentally, this boy is currently a student here. At the end of the last school term, Lord Voldemort returned from the grave so to speak, although I doubt he ever died. Since then, I and a trusted group of wizards and witches called the Order of the Phoenix have been working against Voldemort and his supporters, called Death Eaters.

"We have come across a series of disturbing incidents, well covered up of course, where the victims of attacks have been found as nothing more than dust."

"Akuma," the moyashi stated.

"Naturally. Not everyone would be able to tell the signs, but I have been a secret supporter of the Black Order for many years. There were also rumors that Voldemort had become even more powerful. One of our most trusted spies reports that he has developed a pattern of black stigmata across his forehead that appear on rare occasions. I contacted the Black Order immediately requesting help, and here you are," Dumbledore indicated us with a smile.

"Unfortunately, Voldemort and his followers are very difficult to track. They cover their presence well. For the time being, it seems they are willing to let the wizarding world remain ignorant to their return. The two of you will be housed at the school until we can find them, or they make an appearance.

"I have received a request from your supervisor, a Mr. Komui Lee, that you study magic while you are here, is that correct Mr. Walker?"

"Yes, sir," the moyashi replied.

"Wonderful. Here is a list of the supplies you will need, as well as a purse Komui has provided for purchasing said supplies. One of the teachers will take you to get them in the morning." Dumbledore passed the moyashi a piece of paper and a leather bag which clinked with coins before turning his gaze on me. "I have also been informed that you possess no magical abilities Mr. Kanda."

"Che," I replied.

"This was a surprising development, seeing as people without magic are typically not allowed to know of the wizarding world or this school. But I felt that in light of the current situation, this particular rule was in need of bending. As you cannot learn magic, I suspect that you will not wish to remain idle while you are here. I have arranged for you a position teaching defense including martial arts and swordplay to the students for self defense, your area of expertise according to Komui.

I sat bolt upright. Me, _teach_! Impossible. I wouldn't do it. "No."

"I was told you would respond in this way. Unfortunately, Komui has ordered that you take the position. I believe his reasoning is that you may find more innocence users seeing the link between innocence and magic, as shown by Mr. Walker."

"Che," I said in annoyance, crossing my arms and turning my head away. Komui had better start praying now, because he was a dead man as soon as I got back.

"I will pretend that you have accepted the job with enthusiasm, and bid both of you a good night. Professor McGonagall will lead you to your rooms." As Dumbledore finished, the door swung open once again, revealing the stern witch, ready to show us our lodging. I stood and stalked out the door. I thought it was impossible, but this mission had just gotten worse.

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A/N: I hope you liked it. Reviews are welcome as always.


	3. Shopping

CH3

A/N: Hey all. I'm impressed with myself. I managed to turn this one out in one day… once I actually sat down to do it. Ah well, its up faster than the last one at least. And, for once I'm putting up the chapter after editing.

Disclaimer: I own neither wonderful story featured here.

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**Allen's POV**

Professor McGonagall led us back down the stairs and through the dark corridors. She had lit a tiny light at the tip of her wand to show the way. I couldn't keep the spring out of my step as we went up a few more staircases and down another, smaller and less daunting hallway. The castle was amazing and magical and like something from my wildest dreams. Sure, I had seen innocence do similar things, but this place gave off a different feeling. There was a comforting aura about the building, like a warm blanket on a cold day that could protect me from the world... and everything that had happened on the Ark. I hadn't told anyone, but there had been a heavy presence hanging over me ever since. Sometimes I glimpsed a shadow in a window as I passed, or heard a faint sound like someone whispering in my head. Now, the presence was gone, the whispers had gone quiet, and when I looked at a window, the only shadows were my own and the dark outline of trees on the outside. I felt lighter and freer than since I played that piano on the Ark.

And I was excited to learn magic. I could feel the innocence in my left arm pulsing slightly, as if it could sense the magic and was excited too.

"Here you are," McGonagall said, stopping in front of a stretch of wall bare except for two tapestries. "The room on the left belongs to Mr. Kanda, and will be your permanent residence for the year. The room on the right will be yours temporarily Mr. Walker. Once the school year begins, you will move into a dormitory with your fellow pupils. In the morning you can come down to the Great Hall for breakfast. It is just off the entrance hall. After, one of our other teachers will take you to get supplies. Goodnight." The witch swept off down the corridor and then was gone.

I turned towards the tapestry. Was this my room? I tried to lift it off the wall to see if there was a door hidden behind. The man in the picture laughed. I stepped back to look at him. "Begging your pardon," said the man, who looked like he must have come out of the renaissance, "but you cannot get in that way. I have to let you in. Pick a password that only you will know, and I will not open up to anyone without the password."

He looked at me expectantly. I racked my brain for an acceptable password. Several possibilities came to me but were discarded; 'innocence' and 'exorcist' were too obvious, and everything else I thought of would get forgotten within half a day. I leaned close and whispered to the tapestry, "The password's 'samurai', OK?"

The aristocrat looked down the hall at Kanda, who was obviously Japanese, and porting a sword. He had also already gotten into an argument with his tapestry. "Yes sir," said the aristocrat and the tapestry rolled up to reveal a door that swung forward. I hurried into the room and closed the door behind me, immediately regretting my choice of password. Even the decorations were getting suspicious.

I turned around to look at the room. It was bigger and more luxurious than my room at headquarters. There was a fire burning merrily in the hearth with two large armchairs in front of it. I could see a king-sized four poster bed with hangings through an adjoining door. This I headed for immediately, being exhausted after the insane day I'd had. I kicked off my boots, flopped on the bed and was asleep in minutes.

I woke up in the morning to sunlight streaming through a tall window. I blinked at the brightness and stumbled over to look out, yawning. I judged I was on the fourth or fifth floor by the proximity of the ground. The view was impressive. I was situated above the lake; the tops of the tiny waves sparkled in the morning light, giving the water a gilded look. Beyond the opposite shore I could see a wall of tall trees.

My stomach growled impressively and I decided I should go find some breakfast. I looked down at myself and realized that I had slept in my exorcist's uniform. It was far too wrinkled to wear. I grabbed a spare from my trunk, which I now realized I had left on the train, and wondered how it had gotten up here. I shrugged; it must be magic. I opened a door off of my bedroom and found a large bathroom. I glanced in the mirror. With my rumpled clothing and extremely messy hair, it looked like I had been doing more than sleeping. A blush slammed into my face as thoughts of a certain long-haired exorcist swam through my head. I clamped down on the thoughts, deciding I needed a shower… a very cold one.

After I was presentable for the day, I emerged from behind the tapestry just as Kanda was coming out of his room. We silently fell in step, and didn't say one word to each other all the way down to the Great Hall. I was admittedly very glad he was there; Kanda had a great sense of direction, while mine was hopeless. Left to my own devices, I would probably get so lost they wouldn't find me until halfway through term.

Although, by the time we were coming close, I was sure I could find my own way; the smell of food pulled me forward into a huge room. I looked up and was surprised; it looked as if the Hall had been built without a ceiling, which seemed impractical. Although, at the moment the sky was a perfect blue and the idea seemed quite nice.

The room itself was filled by four long tables stretching the length of the hall. These were empty. A fifth table at the opposite end of the hall had a few sleepy looking people eating breakfast. I assumed they were teachers. Among them was Dumbledore, who gestured for us to come and join him. Kanda and I crossed the room to the large table and took two empty seats on either side of the headmaster.

"Did you sleep well?" he asked as I settled into my seat. I could only nod; my attention had been caught by the large array of foods on serving dishes all down the table. I began piling the food as high as I could onto my plate without it falling over. Dumbledore seemed unfazed by the amount of breakfast I took, and went on, "This is Hagrid," he indicated the man on my left, who was about four times the size of a normal person. "He will be taking you to Diagon Alley once you are done eating. Hagrid, this is Allen Walker who is enrolling as a student here, and on my right is Kanda, who will be joining you as a fellow teacher." Kanda scowled.

I nodded to Hagrid as way of acknowledgement and tucked into my food. Dumbledore turned to talk to Kanda, assuming I wouldn't be available for conversation any time soon. He tried to start discussing class schedules and curriculums. I would have laughed at Kanda's face, with grew stormier with every word, if it my mouth wasn't so full of food.

I finished seconds and thirds in record time and leaned back contentedly in my chair.

"I'm impressed," said Hagrid from next to me. "Didn't think yeh could finish all o' that."

I shrugged. "I just have a big appetite."

"Are yeh ready then?" he asked.

"Yeah," I said, looking over to where Kanda had just finished his breakfast. Somehow he had managed to procure a pair of chopsticks. I wondered if he kept them up the sleeves of his uniform. He was also looking about ready to kill Dumbledore, so I figured it would be a good idea to get him out of there.

Hagrid led the pair of us out of the hall and into another room, which was empty except for a lit fireplace. "We'll be usin' floo powder," he told us. "Yeh take a pinch of this powder and throw it in the fire and yeh step in and say where yeh wanna go. I think that's abou' it. We're going to Diagon Alley." He offered me a pot filled with a green powder.

I took a pinch and threw it into the flames, which flared green, gathered my courage and stepped in, saying "Diagon Alley." I zoomed up the fireplace, spinning at an impressive rate, my elbows bumping up against the sides of the chimney. As suddenly as it began, I was pitched out of a completely different fireplace and onto a hearth. I stood and got away from there fast to clear the way for whoever was coming behind me. While I waited, I tried my best to wipe the soot off my gloves, which were now looking rather grey instead of white.

As I guessed, not long after Kanda stepped out, spewing curses and wiping soot from his face. "What the hell!" he shouted as Hagrid appeared, stooping to get out of the fireplace. "Why didn't you warn us about that?"

"Sorry. Yeh get used to it after yeh travel by floo powder enough. I forgot it's weird at first."

"Sorry, right," fumed Kanda, and stalked away. I followed him out of the open door into what looked like a pub. Chatter stopped as we were noticed; I figured we did make a weird pair, a scowling Japanese man carrying a sword and a teen with white hair and a weird scar. It picked up again just as quickly. I guessed they got plenty of strange people in a pub for wizards. As it was I spotted a few that didn't look like humans, but strangely enough I didn't see any Akuma. Usually there was at least one in a crowd this big; I wondered if wizards were somehow immune to the Millennium Earl's lies.

"Through here," Hagrid said, leading us through the pub and out a back door into what looked like the courtyard where they put out the trash. Kanda's eye began twitching and his hand inched toward Mugen, which he had insisted on wearing despite reassurances that Diagon Alley was safe. Hagrid pulled a pink umbrella from somewhere in his large coat and tapped the wall. A hole appeared as if Hagrid had poked out one of the bricks with his umbrella and then grew into an archway large enough even for him.

I stared with wide eyes. We were looking onto a long street filled with wizards and witches in all colors of robes milling about with shopping bags. The sides of the street were lined with shops selling just about everything you could think of, from brooms to owls to some really gross slimy things that I guessed were for potion making.

"Well, first we need teh get yeh a wand Allen." He led us to an old shop with stacks of boxes visible through the windows and the words _Ollivander's: Makers of Fine Wands since 382 B.C. _painted in fading, peeling letters over the door. A bell chimed as we entered the small, dusty shop. Kanda immediately took the only chair in the place, sitting down and crossing his legs with a scowl on his face.

"Hello," an old man said, emerging from behind rows of boxes. I assumed he was Mr. Ollivander. As he came closer, I noticed he had silvery eyes even lighter than my own. "Hm, you're here for a wand," he stared at me. "But you're not a wizard, are you." He made the question a statement as he looked at Kanda. "Interesting." He disappeared again behind his shelves, just to reappear moments later carrying a large stack of boxes. "Now, which is your wand hand?" asked Ollivander.

"I write with my right hand, if that's what you mean." I couldn't even hold a pencil right in my left hand anymore; I had discovered the new joints just weren't flexible enough.

"No, no. Which is your _magical_ arm?" Olivander asked again, his silver eyes shining in the gloom of the shop.

"My le…left," I stuttered, completely unbalanced. How did he know the innocence was in my left arm?

"Very good. Take off that glove," he ordered, looking pointedly at my covered hand.

I drew the cloth away self-consciously and held out the black appendage. Ollivander stared intently at the green cross on my hand for a moment before turning away, muttering something under his breath that sounded like 'curious.' He took a wand from its box and handed it to me, but then snatched it back just as quickly. The next one I was allowed to wave before it was stolen back.

I was starting to feel a bit impatient around twenty wands. Kanda was definitely feeling impatient, if the deepening scowl was anything to go by. The next wand was long, thin and made of a pale wood. I took it fully expecting to have it grabbed away, but dropped it the moment it touched my fingers as my innocence flared with bright green light. I blinked away the spots in my eyes and looked through Crown Clown's mask with surprise. I could feel the heavy white cloak over my shoulders and see my transformed hand. Somehow the wand had caused my innocence to activate. I deactivated and bent down carefully to retrieve the wand, handling it as if it would explode at any second. Crown Clown didn't activate again, and I breathed a little sigh of relief. I couldn't be activating every time I tried to do magic.

When I straightened up, all three other occupants of the shop were looking at me with strange expressions on their faces. I felt heat rising to my own. "That doesn't usually happen," I mumbled.

"Curious," said Ollivander. "That certainly isn't the reaction we usually get, but obviously this wand has chosen you. Ash, eleven inches long, unicorn tail hair, very flexible."

I quickly paid Ollivander from the wizard money Dumbledore gave me and hurried out of the shop, feeling unnerved.

"What was that Allen?" asked Hagrid as soon as we were back on the street. "It didn' look like any magic I've seen before. And what happened to yer hand?"

"It's not magic. It's called innocence. Kanda and I are exorcists. We use innocence to destroy Akuma."

Hagrid looked completely confused, but nodded anyway. "Well, we best be off. Lots more supplies to buy."

We followed Hagrid down the row of shops, stopping to buy potions ingredients and tools, a telescope for astronomy and a gigantic pile of books. The stack was daunting, and I wondered when I'd have time to read all of them. Through the entire shopping experience I could tell Kanda was annoyed. The look on his face said 'why do I even have to be here?'

"Alrigh', last stop is Madam Malkin's, to get robes for both of yeh."

A short witch came up to us when we entered the shop and asked "What can I do for you today?"

"We need a set of Hogwarts student robes for Allen and a set of robes for Kanda," listed Hagrid, pointing to us in turn.

Kanda whipped around to face Hagrid. "Who said I'm wearing robes? No. My uniform is good enough."

"Sorry Kanda, Hogwarts rules. All teachers wear robes."

Kanda gave him a look that would peel paint.

I volunteered for fitting first because I was worried Kanda might just try to kill Madam Malkin if she tried to fit robes on him. As it was he was still glaring daggers at Hagrid.

The uniform was very similar to my usual garb, if not a bit more plain: white shirt, black pants, and black robes without any adornment. There was also a black vest over the shirt, and I was informed I would receive a tie once term started. I also asked Madam Malkin for a new pair of gloves, seeing as the soot from the fireplace had ruined my current pair. These I tucked securely into my pockets so they wouldn't get messy on the way back.

Once everything was pinned, and somehow magically sewn in minutes, I was ushered into a dressing room to make sure it fit. Once I was done, Kanda was beckoned over for his fitting. He stalked off with his usual aura of unhappiness; Madam Malkin chatting to him about how as a teacher he could choose pretty much any robes he wanted. It was obvious Kanda didn't want to choose _any_ robes.

He submitted to the pinning and fitting with ill grace. Once sent to the dressing room, he was determined to stay there and would not come out. After a few failed tries, Madam Malkin called me in for backup. Finally, after much swearing on Kanda's part and plenty of coercion from both Madam Malkin and myself, Kanda emerged from the fitting room wearing a look that could kill. I didn't even really notice his glare; I was too busy staring elsewhere. My stomach did a few backflips, and my mouth had gone dry. The clothes he chose were plain, a white shirt and black pants with a black robe over it all, but they fit to _perfection_. The shirt and pants clung to all the right places, accentuating the samurai's lean, fit body. I suppose that's what you get with magical tailoring. The material of the shirt was thin enough to just make out the tattoo on Kanda's chest through the fabric. It made me want to reach out and trace the pattern with my fingers. The robe looked fairly similar to an exorcist's uniform, but without all the decoration. I liked the simplicity better; all the flashy silver had distracted from his exotic but perfect face.

Kanda met my eyes for a fraction of a second, and I swear I saw something flare faintly in them, before he looked away. "Che, you're staring moyashi. I must look like more of an idiot than I thought." Then he was gone, vanished back into the dressing room.

**Kanda's POV**

I paced back and forth in the dressing room (after ditching the robes for my exorcist's uniform of course) wondering about the look on moyashi's face. At first I thought he was staring because I looked like a complete and total idiot, which I had. But when I met his eyes for a fraction of a second, there was something there that wasn't mocking. It was almost if… but no, the moyashi had _not_ been checking me out. Even more concerning than if he actually had been checking me out was the strange feeling his look had caused in my chest.

I dismissed the thought immediately. I was on a mission; I had no time for pointless things like that. I must have imagined whatever it was, but just in case, I decided to stay further away from the moyashi.

When I came out again, the moyashi was wearing his usual blank, polite expression. Yes, I had to have imagined it. As far as I was concerned this little incident never even happened.

I left the shop reluctantly toting the bag with my robes, which I was resolved to never wear, rules or no.

"We can go back to school unless yeh need to get supplies for your classes, Kanda," said Hagrid. I had been surprised when I had seen him for the first time. He was even bigger than Marie, and that's hard to find.

"Che, no. Lets leave."

The second trip by floo powder was no better than the first. We arrived back just in time for lunch, but I declined and headed straight to my room. I didn't want to run into the headmaster again and have to listen to him go on and on about setting up curriculums. I didn't want the job, so why put in effort. I was going to wing it.

I was in a bad mood when I stepped up to the tapestry guarding my room. It didn't help that the tapestry in front of the moyashi's room had snickered at me when I passed by. It probably still thought it was funny that there was a muggle in the castle. I'd had to threaten a few on the way up as it was to keep them from gossiping about me. "Mugen." I stated crossly to the tapestry.

"Yes sir," the knight on the fabric said icily, and rolled up. We had not gotten off to a good start the night before. But it didn't matter. It was only a decoration. I dumped the bag of robes in the bottom of the wardrobe in my bedroom and went back out to the front room. I had cleared all of the fancy furniture off to the sides of the room to make a space to meditate. I sat cross legged in front of the hearth, hoping it would help me relax.

I quickly gave up. Every time I tried to clear my mind, the look on moyashi's face from this morning and the feeling it gave me would pop into my head, despite the fact that _it never happened_. I growled out a few choice curses, grabbed Mugen from where he rested against the wall, and stalked out of the room, heading for the grounds. Maybe some practice would get that obnoxious little incident out of my head.

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A/N: Hope everyone enjoyed the 'obnoxious little incident.' ;D Allen obviously did. o.O Reviews welcome (no flames though please).


	4. The Sorting

CH4

A/N: Oh man, I forgot that Hagrid is supposed to be off with the giants at the beginning of the fifth book. Whoopsie. Thank goodness it doesn't seem like any of you have noticed yet. For the purpose of this story (and not having to rewrite the last chapter), Hagrid managed to get back before term started.

Anything in _**bold and italics is taken directly from Harry Potter and the Order of the Pheonix**_, which is unfortunately not mine, so I will give credit to J K Rowling where it is due. Hopefully that is enough of a disclaimer.

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**Allen's POV**

In the two weeks between our arrival and the start of term, Kanda and I settled into life at Hogwarts. Me more than him I think. Although, the teachers did stop gawping whenever they caught sight of Kanda practicing with Mugen out on the shore of the lake, which was a lot. I managed to find my own way down to the Great Hall for breakfast at the beginning of the second week, only getting lost a little. (Although, getting lost wasn't necessarily a bad thing. One time I found the kitchens, and a bunch of house elves who love to feed people. They had immediately taken a liking to me because of the sheer amount of food I can eat.) I also went down to Hagrid's house for tea and got to meet his giant boarhound, Fang, who tried to eat Timcampy. Tim wouldn't go anywhere near Hagrid after that just in case the massive dog was around.

During that time I did manage to glean some more information from different teachers about the wizarding world and the school, including important facts like there actually _was_ a ceiling in the great hall, and that I would be sorted into one of four houses at the start of term. I knew I didn't want to be a Slytherin, mainly because the head of Slytherin house, Snape, intimidated me a bit.

The last day of the start of term I got my first ever letter by owl post. I ripped open the envelope, wondering just who would be sending me letters. I didn't have any contacts in the wizarding world, and Komui had already informed me by way of golem that he refused to use owl post. I immediately recognized Lavi's handwriting:

Hey Allen (moyashi)

How is life in the magical world? You have to tell me every little detail. What's the school like? What are the wizards like? Have you done any magic yet?

Things are fairly quite around here (as far as the Black Order is concerned). Just one Komurin since you've been gone, which tried to take out the owl Komui was going to use to send you a letter. The bird pooped on his beret, which he wasn't too happy about. Lenalee wrecked the Komurin (just like everyone before it. What number are we up to now? 36?) and saved the owl. Apparently they've become good friends since they can both fly, and Lenalee made Komui allow her to keep it. She's named him Kawaii. Leave it to Lenalee to name a male bird "cute." She's agreed to let me use him to send you letters.

So, how are your Yuu problems coming? Remember, if you give me info, I'll give you advice. (hint hint)

Write back!

Lavi

P.S. Komui says to send Timcampy to him because there are no phones at the school. You can communicate by Tim's recording system.

I shoveled down the rest of my breakfast at an impressive rate and raced off to my room to send a reply, even though the library was closer. I hadn't quite gotten the hang of using a quill yet, so I had a secret stash of normal pens in my trunk (shhh). I sat at the table in the front room to write the letter, the thought hitting me that I would be living in the dorms after today. It was a little intimidating, mostly because it meant I would have to learn my way down to the Great Hall from a different place. I was also worried about what people might think of my innocence. I usually kept it covered, but sharing a room with several other boys, it would be too much work to hide it. Mostly I was excited though. I wanted to meet other wizards and see what they were like.

I started the letter, being sure to try to remember everything. Lavi would kill me if I left out a single detail:

Lavi,

Are you ready? Gramps standing by to record all of this?

Kanda and I got to the school by train. It was a huge red steam engine, which we caught in the usual way. I'm told though that the students don't have to jump onto it from a bridge. It takes them to the school from a disguised platform called Platform 9-3/4. They will be arriving today.

The actual school is a massive, old, stone castle surrounded by huge grounds. It has its own lake and a forest, which they tell me is full of terrifying magical creatures. Right now I'm staying in a private room which is guarded by a tapestry (all of the pictures here move and talk). It is really nice, way fancier than the rooms at the Order. Tonight I'll be moving into a dorm with the other students once I'm sorted into my house. There are four houses which the students are divided into: Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. Each house has its own traits, and everyone is sorted into them by which traits match their personality best. The teachers still won't tell me how they do this. They say it would ruin the experience. The Gryffindors are brave, the Hufflepuffs are hard working, the Ravenclaws are smart, and the Slytherins are sly. I would rather not be in Slytherin, it doesn't have a good reputation, but I might just end up there given my poker "skills."

The headmaster of Hogwarts is an old wizard named Dumbledore. He has long white hair and beard, and always wears these half-circle glasses. He is supposed to be really powerful. Dumbledore is the one who asked for help from the Order.

I've also met another of the teachers named Hagrid, who teaches care of magical creatures and lives in a little hut out on the grounds. (I've visited him before, and his dog, Fang, tried to eat Tim.) Hagrid is absolutely massive. He must be at least eight or nine feet tall. I won't be taking his class though, because students don't get to choose classes until their third year. Hagrid was the one who took Kanda and I to get supplies from this place called Diagon Alley. It's a concealed magical street full of all of these shops with amazing stuff, way too much to describe in one letter.

The one type of magical creature I have met is house elves. They are short with huge eyes and bat-like ears, and wear whatever they can find for clothing (mostly dishtowels and pillow cases). I got lost one day in the castle and found one of them, or actually he found me. His name is Dobby, and apparently he is friends with some of the students, so he helped me out. He took me back to the kitchens, which are behind this painting of a bowl of fruit which opens if you tickle the pear (weird, right?). I have decided I absolutely love house elves. Their favorite pastime is feeding people. I'm pretty sure they like me now too, seeing as I ate so much of their cooking.

Whew, done, and now my hand is cramping. Tell Komui that communicating by Tim is fine, and I'll send him soon.

Allen

PS- I _don't_ have Yuu problems.

Once I was done, I eyed the owl suspiciously. Knowing my luck it would probably try to peck my hand. Tim was wisely hiding; for some reason just about every animal he ever met wanted to eat him. I gave the envelope containing the letter to the owl very cautiously; thankfully no pecks. He must have been trained. I wondered just how Komui got a hold of a real wizard post owl. "Take this to Lavi Bookman, at the Black Order, OK," I told Kawaii, crossing my fingers that the bird somehow understood me and would get the letter to the right person. I took him to the window and opened it for him to fly off.

This done, I decided a visit to the house elves was in order.

My stomach stuffed with good food from the kitchens, I headed down to the entrance hall, wearing my new Hogwarts robes. McGonagall had requested I meet her there before the feast and Sorting. She was standing at the bottom of the stairs, dressed in her first day of term best.

"Mr. Walker, good. You will wait in here until the Sorting. The other first year students will join you shortly." She led me to a small room off the hall, before leaving again.

It was a plain room, without any furniture or paintings. Before long I could hear many voices chattering on the other side of the door, but they faded away until they were just a dull hum in the background. I assumed the voices must belong to older students, who would already be seated in the Great Hall for the feast.

Only a few moments later I could hear more voices approaching, but these were more hushed and nervous. The door swung open to reveal small, scared looking faces peering around Professor McGonagall curiously. She stood aside and they filed in quietly, until someone spotted me and whispers broke out through the crowd.

McGonagall cleared her throat to recapture their attention, and then made a speech about the Sorting and the houses, and suggested they neaten up. I didn't pay much attention; I had picked up all of the information in bits and pieces in my weeks here. As soon as the door swung shut behind McGonagall, the whispers grew in volume.

"Mr., are you a teacher here?" asked one nervous voice. The crowd of little first years parted like the red seas to show the boy who had spoken. No one wanted to be under my scrutiny if I was a professor.

"No, I'm going to be a student here too. I'm about to be Sorted, just like you," I reassured the frightened boy. "My name is Allen Walker. Nice to meet all of you."

A hint of relief showed on the faces around me. "How old are you?" inquired a girl from somewhere in the crowd.

"I'm fifteen, not all that much older than you."

This seemed to open the floodgates, because suddenly voices were calling out questions from all directions: "Why do you have white hair?" "Do they actually let people start so late?" "Why are you starting so late?" plus many more that I couldn't hear.

At that moment I was saved by Professor McGonagall appearing once again to lead us out to the Great Hall. I strategically situated myself at the back of the line, hoping to draw as little attention to myself as possible. I knew this wouldn't happen, with my white hair, curse mark and the fact that I was at least a head taller than the biggest of the other first years, but I could hope.

As we passed first through the entrance hall, and then into the Great Hall, the other students wore expressions of awe. They couldn't stop staring everywhere with their wide, nervous eyes. When they caught sight of the ceiling in the Great Hall, all eyes went immediately up, which resulted in a few stumbles. No one actually tripped, but they would always recover their footing and look around with flaming faces and try to shrink into their robes. However, no one noticed them. All eyes were fixed on me, and I could only guess that all whispers were about the strange, tall first year with white hair.

Although, some whispers might also be directed at Kanda, who was sitting at the head table with the other teachers and scowling out across the Hall. He was in his robes. I wondered who had been recruited to force him to wear them, and just how the hell they had succeeded. I had a terrible sneaking suspicion that magic had been involved.

I was distracted from staring at Kanda when I saw Professor McGonagall place something in front of the teacher's table out of the corner of my eye. It was a stool bearing an old, tattered looking hat. Somehow, we would be sorted using this hat. I was feeling a bit nervous, which was strange.

A rip in the hat had opened and started singing. I figured I should be concerned that a hat was singing, but I had seen enough strange things in my few weeks here that it didn't faze me. Once the song was over, McGonagall started calling out names. The first girl stumbled up to the stool, sat, and put the hat on her head. It was big enough that it fell over her eyes. After only a few seconds, it called out, "GRYFFINDOR"!

The girl was then allowed to go and take her seat, much to her relief, and the next person was called up. The Sorting continued in this manner, with the names progressing in alphabetic order by last name. Consequently, I was almost the last person called. When McGonagall called "Walker, Allen," and I walked toward the stool, the whispers burst out again and the butterflies stirred. I looked up at the teachers table, and saw Kanda staring at me, which did absolutely nothing for my nerves. I sat on the stool and put the hat on my head.

"Very interesting," said a voice in my ear that I could only assume was the hat. "You're a bit old for Sorting, aren't you? Ah well, the founders of this school wanted all wizards to be educated so I doubt they'd mind the age. Although, you're not a wizard either. You can do magic, yes, but you're not a wizard by birth. And a curse as well! But it's not my place to ask questions, I'm just here to put you in a house. Let's see, where should you go… you are certainly no stranger to hard work, and have a dash of cunning too. Hm, but yes, you have a dose of loyalty and courage that Godric Gryffindor himself would have been proud of." Then aloud, the hat shouted "GRYFFINDOR!"

I lifted the hat from my head and walked to my new table, thankful that I could finally sit down and maybe escape the stares. A few more first years were sorted into their houses. Once McGonagall took away the hat, Dumbledore stood.

"Welcome all of you to a new year at Hogwarts. I can hear growling stomachs, so I won't keep you from our wonderful food. Dig in."

At that, piles of food appeared on the serving dishes in front of us. I had seen this before, so I wasn't surprised, but many of the other first years around me were taken aback for a moment. That soon passed and they dug in with gusto. I joined them, and piled my plate high. Despite eating plenty courtesy of the house elves only a few hours ago, I was hungry again. This gained me a few more stares, but at least my eating habits were something I was used to being stared at for.

After every single plate had been cleared of both dinner and dessert, Dumbledore rose again. "_**Well, now that we are all digesting another magnificent feast, I beg a few moments of your attention for the usual start-of-term notices. First years ought to know that the forest in the grounds is out of bounds to students—and a few of our older students ought to know by now too.**_

"_**Mr. Filch, the caretaker, has asked, for what he tells me is the four hundred and sixty-second time, to remind you all that magic is not permitted in corridors between classes, nor are a number of other things, all of which can be checked on the extensive list now fastened to Mr. Filch's office door.**_"

At this point, he was interrupted by Professor Umbridge, a tiny woman who had a face which was unfortunately a bit like a frog's, and liked pink… a lot. I had met her already, and I can't say I'm particularly fond of her. I tried to listen to her speech out of courtesy, but after a few moments, I couldn't help but tune her out.

When she was done, Dumbledore took the floor again and picked up as if he hadn't been interrupted. "I have a final piece of information I will impart to you before releasing you to your beds. This term, we have two guests joining us at Hogwarts. They are from an organization of men and women called exorcists. They have agreed to come to Hogwarts to both teach us and learn from us. Mr. Walker and Professor Kanda, will you please stand." I stood, feeling all eyes gravitating back to me once again. "As I'm sure you have all assumed, Professor Kanda will be one of your teachers. He will be in charge of a new class required of all students. Mr. Allen Walker will be joining your ranks as a fellow student. Please make them feel welcome. Thank you for your attention. You may now leave."

With these final words, the volume went up several notches and students began to file out. I stood with the group of first years who were all looking lost and still rather intimidated. "First years, this way!" called a voice over the clamor. The source was a girl about my age with bushy brown hair wearing a pin with a 'P' on it on her robes. Standing beside her and also wearing a badge was a tall boy with bright red hair, almost as bright as Lavi's, and a face full of freckles. The group started forward, but there was a lot of backtracking as all of the younger students tried not to be first in the line. I took up the front; I couldn't quite see what they were afraid of, but it might be that they were much younger than the Prefects.

Once we reached the pair, I could tell the boy was looking at me, more specifically my white hair. "Wow mate, how old are you?" he asked me.

"Ron! That's not very polite," the girl chided. "I'm Hermione Granger, nice to meet you," she then said to me, extending her hand.

I shook it, then looked at Ron and said, "I'm fifteen."

"Same as us." Ron then extended his hand to shake as well.

"Alright, this way now!" Hermione called over the heads of the first years and began leading the line toward the doors. Once we were out of the Great Hall and had a bit more room to maneuver, Ron dropped back to walk beside me. "Why is your hair white? And how did you get that scar?" he whispered, most likely so he wouldn't get scolded again.

Apparently he didn't do a good job of this, because Hermione said, "Ron, its obviously charmed," then addressing me, "You should change it back. Unnatural hair colors aren't allowed. If it's not back to normal by the morning, I'll have to tell Professor McGonagall."

"You wouldn't!" exclaimed Ron. "You're evil, threatening to turn a kid in on his first night! Plus he's an exorcist. Maybe all exorcists are required to have white hair."

"Professor Kanda didn't have white hair. His was black." A light blush had appeared on Hermione's face, and all I could think was _oh, no_.

To divert her from this train of thought, I said, "My hair isn't charmed white. It's natural."

Ron stopped walking. The first year behind him ran into his back, causing an immediate pile up.

"It's not that strange, Ron. In the muggle world there are people with white hair and red eyes called Albinos. Come on, you're holding up the line."

"But he doesn't have red eyes." Ron started moving again. He dropped the topic, only to ask, "How did you get that scar?"

"Ron!" Ron shut up. However, it seemed that Hermione was just as curious because a few moments later she said, "Are the exorcists like the exorcists from Christianity?"

"Sort of. We're not exactly the same. We don't get rid of demons. Well, their called Akuma, which is the Japanese word for 'demon,' but they're really kind of like war machines. But yes, we are under the command of the Vatican."

"Er, what is all that?" said Ron, looking very confused.

Ron didn't get his explanation because at that moment we came to a stop in front of a portrait of a fat lady in a pink dress. I realized that I hadn't paid any attention to the way up to the Gryffindor dorms, ensuring I would get insanely lost the next morning as per usual. Maybe I could find this pair of prefects again and get directions. "Password?" she asked. "_Mimbulus Mimbletonia_," Hermione told her and the frame swung forward to reveal the entrance to a magnificent common room. It had a roaring fire in a grate and a large collection of plush armchairs and tables. Everything was draped in red and gold. Ron showed us the boys' dormitories and our room. All of our things had been brought up, I suspected by house elves, and placed at the foot of our beds. I found my trunk, which was not hard to pick out from the others. The other three boys rooming with me kept on glancing at me quickly and looking away. Normally, I would reassure them that I'm not really that scary, but I was too tired. I went to the bathroom and changed into pajamas; the boys were too intimidated to follow, which was fine. If they saw my arm, they probably would be even more scared. I climbed into my bed and drew the heavy red curtains around it, and promptly fell asleep.

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A/N: Sorry this one is only from Allen's point of view. But I wanted to do his sorting from his perspective, and I couldn't exactly do Gryffindor tower from Kanda's POV.

I hope you liked it anyway.

Reviews welcome as always.


	5. Classes

CH5

A/N- LOOK! IT LIVES! It's been forever, so I will let you get right to it.

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**Kanda's POV**

I was not happy to wake up for my first day as a teacher. If it was up to me, I would have said 'screw this job' and slept until noon. However, it was not up to me, but an obnoxious magical alarm clock. It had been given to me by the other new teacher on the pretense of being nice. From the expression that seemed permanently plastered to the frog woman's face, sickly sweet disguising a vicious nature and an insatiable hunger for power, I did not think 'nice' was in her vocabulary. The clock, which she had already set for _two hours_ before classes started, woke me with a high pitched fast ringing that morning and it would not stop. I quickly learned there were two ways to turn the damned thing off: magic, or a good slice from Mugen. I chose the second option.

I would have gone back to sleep in most other situations where I was woken unwillingly, but now I was too agitated. I grabbed my clothes and Mugen and headed out to the grounds for a little practice to calm my nerves. I groaned as I pushed open the front doors; the sun wasn't really even up yet. Sure the sky was getting lighter, but that didn't qualify. Che, so annoying. I unsheathed Mugen and felt immediately calmer as I directed my concentration toward a complex pattern dance. I liked doing this one because it was so hard; it made sure my skills didn't get rusty.

I was so focused on my exercise that I didn't notice the sky brightening until I completed the last move and whirled to a stop. I sheathed Mugen and headed toward the school, estimating I had plenty of time left to eat breakfast, and still get to class on time (damn).

The first thing I noticed on approaching the castle was that the front doors were open, which I found strange. They were usually left closed. The next thing that was brought to my attention was the group of students clustered in the entrance, most of them belonging to the female persuasion. They had their mouths hanging open, and were staring… at… me. Che, I couldn't go out for a little morning practice without being gawked at? Wonderful, just wonderful.

I reached the crowd and they parted before me like the Red Sea. From up close I could tell that the common expression in the crowd was pure awe, and I got the distinct feeling that more than a few were scanning me with their eyes as I passed.

"Good morning Professor Kanda," said one girl timidly when I walked by her. Her friends behind her were giggling and whispering things like 'so brave.'

"Che," I responded, which caused another round of giggling, for reasons I couldn't guess. It was like Lenalee multiplied by a hundred. I had to suppress a shudder at that thought.

I felt momentarily grateful to reach the Great Hall, because the line of staring students ended there. Of course, they could still stare from their tables, which they did. I was getting tired of this, and so I sent them my most frightening glare. Several people found the dinning tables suddenly fascinating, but I could feel the eyes on my back as soon as I passed.

I finally reached the teacher's table and took my seat without a word to anyone. I couldn't help but grit my teeth as the pink-clad professor took the chair next to me.

"Did you find my gift useful?" she asked, full of fake sincerity.

"Che," I replied nonchalantly, thinking of the scattered pieces of machinery still lying on my bedroom floor. Much more useful in that state in my opinion. I scanned the dishes along the table, all holding a large variety of western cuisine. I was of the opinion that most of it tasted like sawdust, or old socks, or any other unappealing thing that came to mind. I would have to give in and ask the moyashi where he found the kitchens. I had a few complaints to make.

I managed to stomach a bit of food, only because I knew that I needed to eat to keep up my strength. All the while I ignored the pink teacher who was going on about something called the Ministry of Magic and how well they ruled over the wizards. From the bits and pieces of her chatter that I caught, this Ministry made the Vatican seem like a great head authority.

I was quite happy to leave as soon as I finished my small breakfast. I passed the moyashi at the door to the great hall. I was surprised that he wasn't off wandering around somewhere lost until I saw his companions. He was talking with two boys and a girl from his new house, two of them wearing badges that marked them as prefects. At least he was in good hands. I shook my head at that thought. Since when was I worried about whether the moyashi got lost or not?

Just as I asked myself this question, he turned to glance at me and fell silent, effectively ignoring his new friend's next question despite the fact that it was rude. I had never seen the moyashi do anything remotely rude to anyone except for me. I stopped in my tracks, and immediately looked for a good reason as to why I might have done this. I wasn't entirely sure myself.

"Che, don't be late for my class moyashi," I told him to break the weird tension in the air.

It worked well, because he narrowed his eyes and said, "Of course not, _Professor_ Kanda," in his most falsely polite voice. I could definitely hear the implied "bakanda" in there. He turned back to the Great Hall and picked up the conversation where he had left off, his new friends giving him odd looks. As I left I heard the prefect boy ask, "What was that about?"

I departed down the left corridor, scanning the rooms I passed for my classroom. I hadn't tried to find it before now, I didn't see a point. I found the right door and opened it on a room that looked larger than the standard classroom and was full of desks and chairs. There was a desk for me and a blackboard at the front of the room. This setup wasn't going to work. I couldn't think of anything I would teach anyone that involved sitting down. I could always just ignore them and let them sit for an hour, but I reminded myself that it was for the mission. I would not fail a mission. I settled behind my desk to wait.

Before long a few timid first years peeked around the doorway and, upon seeing that they had found the right room, took the last row of seats. I raised an eyebrow; it seemed they were just as scared of me as the finders. This suited me just fine. The small group of students had blue badges on their uniforms, marking them as Ravenclaws, which I had heard was the most studious house. If they liked to study, they were going to hate this class. They were already looking awkward because there were no books for them to hide behind.

A few more Ravenclaws trickled in, followed by a lone Gryffindor that I would recognize anywhere. How many other teenagers did I know with old-man hair? It seemed he had taken my warning against being late to heart. My morning was looking a bit brighter; nothing like a little successful intimidation to start the day off right. A large group came in after the moyashi and took their seats. As fewer back of the classroom seats were available, the more nervous the new arrivals became. When it was time for class to begin, I started right away without waiting for stragglers.

"I hope that all of you know that I'm Professor Kanda from the welcome speech last night. I won't repeat that again. Now get up and leave your stuff here." Several confused faces stared at me. "You can hear, right? Leave everything and get up." My eye had started to twitch. This would be a long year if I had to repeat everything I said.

My words _finally _filtering through those scared little first year brains, the class stood. "Follow me," I commanded as I led them from the classroom. We went back down the corridor, and through the entrance hall. I stopped in front of the doors and crossed my arms. I could guess what would happen as soon as we got outside, and I was determined to head this problem off now. "We're going out. That doesn't mean you get to run around and chase newts, or whatever it is wizard kids do. This is still a class, which means you still pay attention to me." I didn't wait for an answer, but turned and pushed open the massive front doors. I headed down toward the flat patch of ground by the lake that I had found was good for practice. I didn't look behind me to make sure the class was there; they would follow, or I would get annoyed.

When I reached my destination and turned around, sure enough they were there in a little clump, all trying to stand at the back of the group. The moyashi stood in the front, looking unafraid, and disapproving because I was using the other student's fear of me to my advantage.

"Alright, here is how things are going to work. I'll show you a set of exercises and then you copy it. Got it?" The little clump of students nodded in unison. "Spread out or you'll get hit," I directed, already expecting there would be more than one black eye by the end of the class.

Everyone timidly shuffled a bit apart, still doing their best to try to hide behind the person in front of them. Che, they would just have to learn the hard way how many bruises one can collect without enough room to move. I wasn't about to waste my time trying to get that fact through their thick skulls.

Deciding that it was well past time to get things under way, I started an easy pattern of hand to hand combat moves, one of the most basic I knew. I finished, not even breathing hard, and faced the class. The faces in the crowd wore expressions ranging from impressed to scared to confused. "Get started," I ordered them, crossing my arms and waiting. The only motion was one girl shifting nervously from foot to foot. "I said to get started." My eye had started twitching again.

"Kanda, they're not exorcists," the moyashi supplied. "They don't have any experience at all. They can't do that."

I blinked, surprised. I thought everyone had at least a bit of training. It seemed fairly essential to basic survival. "You do it then."

The moyashi put on a look of long suffering. "Of course, _Professor _Kanda." He stepped away from the group and flowed through the moves. When I say flowed, I mean _flowed_. He moved between each step with incredible grace; it was entrancing. Not what I had expected from someone who eats three times his weight each day. "Was that satisfactory?" He asked with his polite smile plastered on his face.

I shook my head slightly to clear it. "Great if you're trying out for the ballet. Pretty, but no power," I informed him, really thinking that it wasn't that horrible, but I wasn't going to tell him that. "Practice for the rest of class." I left the moyashi to his exercises, and turned to face the other students, resigned to spending an hour trying to teach them how to make a fist. If the rest of the school was like this, someone was going to get to know Mugen very intimately. Most likely Komui or Dumbledore, I couldn't decide which.

**Allen's POV**

I gave Kanda's back my very best death glare as he went to start teaching the other first years the very basics. Ballet! Pretty! _Rest of class!_ I thought I had plenty of power, enough to take out Akuma. Although it was as close to a compliment I would probably ever get from him, so I would take what I could get. I felt extremely sorry for the other students though. Kanda had no sense of the limits of what other people could and couldn't do; he would end up killing them. He already looked like he wanted to, and his hand kept twitching toward Mugen, never a good sign. If I didn't value my life, I might hide the sword so he couldn't bring it to class. Because I do value my life, I decided that I had better actually do the practice he assigned; in his mood he would be looking for a target, and I suspected it would be me.

Repeating the same set of basic exercises for an hour is boredom incarnate. This meant I was extremely relieved when Kanda released us at the end of the period. He set the first years to practicing the basic punch. He watched me do the exercises again before I got stuck with more of the same for "homework."

We hurried back up to the school as a class, and everyone was just barely able to collect their things and run to the next lesson. I had transfiguration and charms before lunch, both of which I stumbled through with much confusion. I had never really attended a school before, so this was all a new experience for me.

I met Ron and Hermione and their friend Harry at lunch. They were still curious about me and the Black Order, and I could pick their brains for information about the wizarding world which I could send in letters to Lavi. He would never shut up if I didn't provide good enough tidbits.

I was about to tuck in to another foot high pile of food when Timcampy landed on my head. I hadn't seen him since I left the dorm this morning, which led me to expect he was being lazy and slept all morning. He immediately started chewing on my hair.

"How did you get a hold of a snitch?" asked Harry, catching sight of Tim.

"He's a golum," I told him, not quite sure what a snitch was. I untangled Tim from my hair and held him out to my new friends. "His name is Timcampy."

"How is he working?" inquired Hermione, reaching out to touch Tim. "Nothing electronic works in Hogwarts."

"He doesn't run on electricity. My master made him, I don't know exactly how. Master knows some ancient incantations, but it can't be wizard magic," I continued, thinking aloud. "He doesn't have parasitic innocence so he couldn't do magic."

This statement was met with three blank stares, the boys worse than Hermione, who looked like she was at least trying to understand but still failing. I sighed, they were going to need the full explanation for this one. "Ok, so each exorcist is compatible with this stuff called innocence, which can be made into weapons and allows us to defeat Akuma. There are different types of innocence. There is equipment type, which Kanda has, and parasitic type, which I have. A parasitic type has their innocence as part of their body. Innocence conducts magic, so I can use magic. Equip types can't because their innocence is separate from them."

"Wait, so you have a weapon _in your body_?" Hermione asked, shocked.

"Um, yeah," I told her, feeling a bit awkward. Most people tended to freak out when they found out about that little tidbit. The worst was when this detective said I was sick for deforming my body, even though I told him I didn't do it. "I was born with it."

"Bloody wicked!" Ron asserted, and Harry nodded in agreement. "Can we see it?"

"Maybe some other time," I deflected. "Some people think it's sort of gross. I don't want to put anyone off their appetite. Now, would someone tell me what a snitch is?"

I was met with two stunned stares, followed by a chorus of "You don't know what Quidditch is?"

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Now you've done it. They'll spend the entire lunch explaining the sport. I'm going to the library to get something productive done. I leave you to it."

I didn't understand why she ran for it until my two new friends started describing the wizard world pass time. By the end of lunch my head was swimming with rules and positions. Thankfully it was time to go to the next class before they started in on teams and famous games. At least I had plenty to fill my next letter to Lavi. If I went and looked at one of the books they mentioned, I might even have enough to keep him satisfied for a while.

After another long class and nearly getting lost twice, I found myself at the door to Professor Umbridge's classroom. I stared at the door for a moment, double checked my bag to make sure I had the correct book and entered with a sigh. I had not been looking forward to this class. From what little I knew of the woman, Professor Umbridge did not seem like the kind of person who would stand to learn that her world is different from what she knows and wants it to be. I've had to deal with several people like that in my time as an exorcist; it is never fun. I had an awful foreboding feeling that she would see me as a representation of that difference and as such, we would not get along.

I took my seat among the timid first years and settled to wait for her to make an appearance. I didn't have to wait long. She entered and gave us what might pass for a very fake smile before taking her place behind the teacher's desk. "Good afternoon class," she intoned.

A couple first years looked up, startled, from where they were trying to hide behind their desks, before shrinking out of sight again and hoping she had not seen them.

Professor Umbridge frowned and stated, "You really must reply when greeted by a professor. It is common courtesy, yes? Now come on, try with me. 'Good afternoon Professor Umbridge.'" When she only received a faint chorus of greetings in reply, she frowned again and told us, "We will have to work on that. You must learn to show proper respect."

She gave up on making us greet her for the moment though. Instead she used her wand to write the course aims and then set us a reading assignment in _Defensive Magical Theory _by Wilbert Slinkhard. As we settled in to read what might be the most boring piece of literature I ever encountered, two of the first years began to whisper to each other in the back of the classroom. Professor Umbridge's head snapped up from where she had been reading a pile of papers at her desk. She gave the student a pointed look before rising and advancing toward the poor boy. His face had gone red and he looked as if he wished vanishing spells were covered on the first day of classes.

"Excuse me dear," said Umbridge once she had reached the boy's table, "I couldn't hear you. What is it you would like to share with us?"

The boy turned an even brighter shade of red and mumbled out a reply.

"Oh no, that wasn't nearly loud enough. You must speak up or your classmates won't know what you are saying."

The boy cleared his throat and managed to squeak out, "I wanted to know how quickly we will be able to learn defense. I mean, I'm kind of scared. About You Know Who, and I've been hearing all the rumors…" he trailed off as a crease began to form on Professor Umbridge's forehead.

"Oh you poor dear," she said in her most simpering voice, "I'm so sorry someone has frightened you, but you have nothing to worry about. Any rumors you could hear about You Know Who are completely unfounded. You will learn defense at a reasonable pace, enough to be capable of completing the exams for this course."

The name You Know Who tickled the back of my mind. I was sure I had heard it before in connection to something important. It suddenly came to me, and I put up my hand. When Professor Umbridge turned, she saw me and asked "Yes?"

"Pardon me for suggesting it Professor," I began (often adults didn't take anything they don't want to hear very well unless it is said very politely), "but I think you may have been misinformed. If I'm correct and the name You Know Who refers to the wizard Voldemort, that is the reason why Professor Kanda and myself are currently at this school." All of the first years flinched when I said 'Voldemort' and then continued to look terrified.

I could see a muscle twitch in Umbridge's eye. "Like I just said," she told me in a forced calm voice, "All rumors you may have heard concerning this wizard are false. Especially so if you have been communicating with one Harry Potter."

"I don't mean to be rude, but there is solid evidence, also imparted to the Black Order, that there is a wizard named Voldemort at large. I would not have been called here if it wasn't for this issue."

The last statement was like flipping a switch in Professor Umbridge. Her face turned to stone and I could tell she was trying to contain rage. As a result, her voice became more sickly sweet, more forced. "I have already had this problem in one class today, Mr. Walker, wasn't it? I will not allow it in two." She walked to her desk and pulled out a pink sheet of paper which she scribbled on violently for a moment before handing to me. "For the rest of you, all these rumors are false, and there is nothing for you to worry about. Return to your reading."

As the rest of the class turned back to their books, I unfolded the paper with a sense of dread. My stomach sank as I read the word "Detention" written across the top. This must be a new record.

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A/N: There you are, the first shiny new chapter in eons. There are also shiny new edits to previous chapters, but nothing major. I hope everyone liked it. Please leave your commentary as always; constructive is preferred.


	6. Do We Reach Heaven?

CH 6

A/N: This one is up fast! Please stick with me on the title of this chapter. It will all make sense in the end. Enjoy.

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. If I owned -Man, Kanda and Allen would have gotten together a long time ago.

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**Allen's POV**

I made my way down to the Great Hall by following the crowd of students streaming from the classrooms. My bag felt heavier than this morning, impossibly weighed down by one tiny slip of paper. I hadn't gotten in trouble in quite a long time. It happened all the time with Master Cross, when I couldn't win him enough drinking money, but being in the Order and away from him had conditioned me out of the feeling. I dropped the bag, and thus the offending piece of paper, behind the bench that ran the length of the Gryffindor table and slid into an empty seat. Within moments, Harry, Ron and Hermione took the seats around me.

"Why the long face?" asked Ron as he started spooning food onto his plate.

"I got detention from Professor Umbridge. I don't think she likes me very much."

"Join the club," remarked Harry. "I got a detention from her too."

"Oh, so that's where the comment about the rumors being 'especially false if you have been communicating with one Harry Potter' came from. I assume you tried to tell her about Voldemort as well."

Harry raised his hands and looked toward the ceiling in a mock praying gesture. "Thank you," he said over-dramatically. "Someone in this school actually believes me."

"We believe you too Harry," Hermione frowned, "But it is very irresponsible for the both of you to get detention on your first days."

"You didn't seem to care when you were going off about her teaching style."

"Well being properly taught is an issue that is important enough to be willing to get a detention." Harry shook his head at this comment, as if he was used to this view from Hermione. She made it apparent that the subject was closed as she asked Ron, "Are you going to use that serving spoon, or keep staring into space? I'm sure other people would like to get their dinner."

It was as if being addressed broke a sort of spell (excuse the unavoidable pun) over Ron. He blinked twice, returned the spoon to the serving dish, and then turned to stare at me. "You," he said, "got detention… on your first day."

"Well yes, that is what we've just been talking about," I told him, confused as to why he had pointed out the obvious.

A smile spread across his face. "You got detention on your very first day at Hogwarts. Oh Fred and George are going to be so jealous! I don't think they even managed that."

"In my defense, I have been here for two weeks before this," I pouted. Being known for getting in trouble faster than any other student didn't seem like a very good thing to me.

Speak of the devils, Fred and George approached the table at just that moment. "Did we hear our melodious names?" asked one. I still couldn't tell which was which.

"Allen Walker just broke your record," Ron said proudly.

"Did he?" asked the other.

"I don't believe it Fred," replied the twin I could now identify as George. "I think our little brother is trying to pull the wool over our eyes."

"Show it too him Allen," Ron told me, a hint of smugness in his voice. He seemed to like besting his brothers for once. The science guys were always joking around and trying to do that sort of thing, so I could tell. I gave him a milder version of the glare I usually reserved for Kanda, and reluctantly pulled the pink slip of paper from my bag.

"Would you look at that George, it's genuine!"

"I'm impressed. I didn't think he looked like much of a trouble maker, but that's a sign of a true trouble maker: the ability to slip right under everyone's noses."

Suddenly two hands were extended in my direction. "Congratulations," they said at the same time. I shook each hand in turn and then the twins walked off to find empty seats. As the left I could hear George remark to Fred, "We're going to have to step up our game if there is a new trouble maker in the House."

"Oh now look what you've done," Hermione admonished Ron, who was snickering, "We'll be confiscating stink bombs and who knows what other joke products from them for weeks!"

"Come on Hermione, it will be hilarious seeing them think they have to duke it out for the position of top pranksters."

"I'm really not that much of a trouble maker or a prankster," I pointed out, which was ignored by both Ron, who was still snickering, and Hermione, who had started to glare. Harry gave me a sympathetic look as if this happened a lot and he felt bad for anyone who wasn't used to it.

After dinner, I followed the three silently back to Gryffindor Tower. Along the way I tried to ply my mind to the task of finding landmarks and such which I could use to find my own way in the future. I knew it was a futile task, but I might as well try.

Once back in the common room, the three gravitated toward a set of chairs by the fire place. It crackled merrily, and surprisingly wasn't too hot even though it was still warm outside. They took the only chairs, but that was fine; I plopped my bag and myself on the ground near the fire. I would need the extra light anyway as the sky had begun to turn the indigo-grey of twilight. I started pulling a multitude of books and papers from my bag. My head swam from the sheer amount.

Ron slumped back into his chair and covered his eyes. "What a bloody awful day. I've got so much homework I could swim in it. Fred and George were right; OWL year is going to be terrible." He closed his eyes and looked ready to fall asleep.

"It won't be that bad Ron," Hermione admonished in a tone of long-suffering. "You just have to manage your time better."

I felt bad for asking, if they had a lot of homework already, but I cleared my throat and asked Hermione, "Do you think you might be able to help me with that? I've never really gone to school before, so I'm not sure how to deal with all the homework."

She gazed at me for a moment in open-mouthed shock. "You've never been to school before? What could you have possibly been doing? Who was irresponsible enough to keep you from an education?"

"Don't be offended," Harry remarked, noticing that the last comment could be taken as an insult to my parents if I had any, "'Mione thinks the world revolves around school."

"It's alright, I'm not offended. When I was little, I worked as a clown in a circus with my adoptive father. After he died, I was taken in by my Master, Marian Cross, who is also an exorcist, a very important one, although not necessarily the most responsible." I sweat dropped, thinking of all the things, very scaring things, that Master had done to be labeled 'irresponsible.' If my new friends noticed, they didn't comment. I shook my head to clear it and shrugged. "I learned things, just not things you would call conventional. And never in a formal classroom, so homework wasn't really a part of the deal either."

"You worked in a circus!" Ron exclaimed, showing that he was not, in fact, taking a nap. "That's wicked awesome."

"What could you possibly learn in a circus?" Inquired Hermione, still sounding completely shocked.

"Tumbling, juggling, being flexible and the like." I swept my legs out into a perfect split to demonstrate. Then I leaned forward on my elbows to see the books laid out on the ground before me better. I might as well just sit like that, it was good practice; I tried to keep the skills I had learned with Mana, even if their only real use was to remind me of him. "So, that homework help?" I looked back up to see that Hermione was looking even more shocked, now joined by Harry and Ron. "What?"

"You just did the splits… Like it was nothing," Harry pointed out.

"And?" To me it was nothing. He shook his head like I was crazy.

"Alright," Ron said suddenly, as if he had just gotten a brilliant idea, "Hermione will help you with your homework if you show us that innocence thing you were talking about."

Hermione directed a scowl at him. "What makes you think you get to dictate the terms of me tutoring someone?"

She sounded pretty mad, so I held up my hands and gave a bright smile. "Really, it's alright," I reassured her. "I said I would show you later anyway." I feel like Timcampy did a better job of diffusing the tension as he fluttered up my sleeve from where he had been hiding all day and went to go land on Hermione's head. She was so startled she forgot to be angry.

I went to go collect my golumn before he started chewing on her hair. I didn't think she would be too happy about that. Since I was standing over there anyway, I drew off my glove to show Ron and Harry. Despite her annoyance with Ron's comment, Hermione seemed curious too because she was sitting on the edge of her chair to get a better look.

Before any of them could say anything, a polite voice asked from behind me, "Excuse me, are you Allen Walker?"

I drew on my glove quickly as I turned to face the owner of the voice. I told the girl who looked to be just older than me that she had the right person.

"I have a message from Professor Dumbledore. You're to come to his office at once. I'm to guide you there."

"If you'll excuse me," I told my new friends before leaving them as I moved toward the portrait hole after the girl. If Dumbledore was calling me, and I assumed Kanda, to his office, he would have news. Somehow I got the feeling the news would not be good.

The girl was silent as she led me to the office. I got the feeling that she had not been told why she was supposed to take me to see the headmaster. She left me in front of the gargoyle and began to make her way back in the direction she came. I remembered the password was "Chocolate frog" from when Professor McGonagall had first brought us to the school. I stepped onto the rotating staircase once the gargoyle jumped aside, a feeling of foreboding in my chest.

**Kanda's POV**

I was meditating in my room when I heard the knock on the door. I cracked an eye open and wondered if it was a student come to be confused about something. I think I remembered Dumbledore mentioning something about students being able to go to the teachers for help. My students would quickly learn I wouldn't put up with that. I closed the eye again and waited to see if the person would knock again or go away. They knocked again. Che. I opened both eyes and glared at the door. They had better get the hint and go away, or I would come out there with Mugen.

The third knock was accompanied by a very scared voice stuttering, "Pro…Professor Kanda, I…I've been sent by Professor Dumbledore."

Shit. That meant it had something to do with the mission, and as much as I would like to continue ignoring the voice, I had duty to complete a mission. Che. Where was this whole sense of duty coming from? I decided spending so much time with the moyashi must be unhealthy.

I picked up Mugen and slung on my exorcist coat; I refused to wear the Hogwarts robes longer than required. Pushing open the door I came face to face with a girl wearing a yellow badge who looked terrified out of her wits at the sight of the sword in my hand, even worse than the finders at the Order. As much as I like scaring people, it just gets annoying when they're this scared. I hadn't done anything to her yet, couldn't she grow some backbone? Che, cowards pissed me off.

I crossed my arms and glared. "What does he want?"

"I d…don't know. H…he didn't tell me."

"Che. Just take me to him then. And if you're going to stutter, don't talk," I ordered.

She turned and started off in the direction of Dumbledore's office, apparently deciding to be quiet. She looked stiff, as if she couldn't decide whether she was glad to not she couldn't see me glare at her, or frightened that I was behind her. When we reached the office, she nearly fled.

I found Dumbledore and the moyashi inside, who was already seated with an anxious look on his face. I barely spared them a glance before dropping into the other chair and crossing both my arms and my legs.

"Be polite and say hello," the moyashi hissed at me from between his teeth.

"Che," I told him in reply. His hands started to tense, and I could tell he was holding back his annoyance. I figured he thought getting into a fight with me in front of the headmaster would be even ruder than my lack of greeting. Manners just got in the way of everything. I was about to tell him something along those lines, perhaps with a cuss word just to prove my point, when Dumbledore cleared his throat.

We both turned to look at him, the moyashi looking slightly apologetic, probably for my behavior. Dumbledore raised his eyebrows. "To business gentlemen?"

The moyashi nodded, looking embarrassed, and said "Yes Sir." I didn't say anything, expecting he would get to it eventually, whether I told him to or not.

He cleared his throat and began, "We have found the site of an attack. The victims are muggles, in a suburban area just outside of London. It was done in secret, without the usual conspicuous signs. It seems Voldemort is still attempting to keep his presence a secret. Some of the neighbors became suspicious, so wizards have already visited the surround area to place muggle-repelling charms and keep the scene from being disturbed. However, we have been unable to ascertain if there are any Akuma lingering and as such cannot enter the building without taking serious safety risks." He placed his fingertips together and continued. "Your job will be to investigate for Akuma and clear the area so that the scene itself can be investigated."

The moyashi nodded, and I said "Che." A moment later there came a knock on the door.

"Come in Remus," Dumbledore directed to whoever was on the other side, then told us "This is Remus Lupin. He will escort you to the scene. Remus, meet Yuu Kanda and Allen Walker, the exorcists who have come to aide us." The man who entered the room was wearing clothes that had seen one patch too many and hung loosely on his frame. There were purple smudges under eyes that bore a serious expression and lines of grey in his brown hair. I thought Lupin didn't look up to even going near a potentially dangerous scene. I sighed in annoyance; we would probably have to make sure this tired guy didn't get himself killed. I didn't really care, but the moyashi probably would, and then most likely almost get all of us killed trying to protect him just like in previous missions. Damn it.

Lupin nodded toward Dumbledore, then said "It's very nice to meet you" and extended a hand. I stood and crossed my arms without shaking his hand in what I thought was a clear message of _lets get this over with_.

The moyashi stood too, but as he turned, his eyes went wide and his mouth hung open. "You're a werewolf!" he blurted out to the surprise of us all. I wondered if he had finally snapped and lost his mind. It wasn't as if I hadn't been expecting it to happen eventually.

Lupin looked both shocked and confused, but when he spoke his voice was calm. I suspected he has trained himself to be able to keep that tone. "Yes, I am. May I ask how you were able to tell?"

The moyashi was still staring hard at him, slightly above him actually. His eyes shifted slightly from side to side. "I… I can see the souls used to make Akuma. My eye didn't activate, but I can see something, I'm not sure if it's truly a soul, attached to you. It looks like a massive wolf, trapped in your body. It keeps prowling, trying to break out. You have it very well contained."

Lupin's lips twitched slightly, and his expression shifted to one of curiosity. "I've never heard my… condition… described in such a unique manner."

I had heard enough of this exchange. We had a scene to investigate, and the faster we finished the job, the faster I could go back to my meditation. "If we can go?" I growled.

The moyashi narrowed his eyes at me. "Of course Kanda." He really had that implied 'Bakanda' thing down to an art. It took all my willpower to not draw Mugen on him.

"Che." I headed out the door, leaving it open behind me, and down the staircase. Lupin and the moyashi caught up in the corridor. Lupin was explaining how we would get to the scene, but I tuned him out. Outside the tiny breeze barely ruffled black waves on the surface of the lake and refused to cut the sullen heat that matched my mood.

Once we left the massive gates that marked the edge of the grounds, Lupin said, "If each of you will please take one of my arms."

I bristled. "Why the hell should I do that?"

"BaKanda," seemingly the moyashi had no qualms about using the nickname once he was away from Dumbledore, "Didn't you listen? We're going by side-along apparition."

I really had no idea what that meant, but I sighed and placed my hand on the man's thin arm. The moyashi did the same on his other side. Lupin began to turn, and I felt myself forced into the turn with him, and then I was being squeezed tight on all sides. I couldn't move at all, even to reach for Mugen. I struggled as hard as possible, thinking shit, this man is attacking me with something, and I can't reach my weapon. At that moment, the pressure released with an explosive cracking sound, and I could move again. I had Mugen drawn and pointed at Lupin's throat in a split second.

To my surprise, Lupin had whipped out his wand nearly as fast. I hadn't thought he had the energy to move that fast. "Please lower your weapon, Mr. Kanda. I have not harmed you in any way. That does not mean I can't defend myself if you attack," he warned. His eyes were more alert, and rippling with a golden color; I assumed he was preparing to draw on the strength of the wolf if necessary.

I did a mental check of myself, to find that I had not been physically harmed. Next I scanned the area, always keeping Lupin and his wand in the corner of my vision. We were in a standard neighborhood, full of houses that all looked like every other. Slowly I lowered Mugen, Lupin matching my motion with his wand. I really considered giving him a scratch as a parting remark.

"Don't fucking do that again," I said before whipping around to face the house whose lawn we occupied. The door swung open, and one of the downstairs windows was shattered. I stalked into the place, the moyashi and Lupin following behind. The dusty remains of three people lay in the living room. There were bullet holes in the walls, and many possessions were broken, but nothing moved.

The moyashi came up behind me. "There are no Akuma down here." I headed for the stairs, with him still trailing behind. Without speaking, we began checking the upstairs, him looking in rooms on one side of the hall and, I the other. With each room, I felt myself growing more pissed off. Nothing was disturbed here, and there weren't any Akuma either. It started looking like we got called into do this damn check for nothing.

We returned to the living room where Lupin waited, lighting the scene with his wand. "Terrible things these Akuma, he remarked. I visited a few of the other sites before we discovered what was responsible. It's awful to say, but this is the best of all of them so far. The others were much more violent."

The moyashi told him, "This was probably caused by level ones. They shoot poison bullets. It's the poison that turns people to ash like this. Anything of a higher level has different abilities and weapons."

"Which means, the bastard has at least level two Akuma following him," I remarked. "The house is clear, meaning this was an absolutely pointless exercise. Let's go."

Instead, the moyashi turned away and crouched over the remains of one of the dead; the clothes of a child lay in the dust. I glared at his back, wondering just what he was doing. I was close to my boiling point: from teaching students all day, having my meditation interrupted just so we could come out here and say that Akuma caused it, and the apparition. I was even more annoyed that there weren't any Akuma around here for me to kill. It would have put me in a better mood.

"Oy, moyashi," I snapped at him, "It's already dead, you know that. _Let's go_."

He turned, startled, like he had been off in his own damn little world, forgetting I wanted to _leave_. As his face came into the wand-light, I could see something sparkling at the corners of his eyes.

"What are you crying about? It's not like you knew them."

He looked puzzled, as if he hadn't even realized the tears were there. "Have you ever wondered what happens to the souls of people killed by Akuma? Or the souls of those who create Akuma?"

"Che."

His expression darkened for a moment. "Of course you haven't. How silly of me to think you cared." Then it changed back to sorrowful as he glanced at the other two sets of remains. "I can't see the souls of humans before they die, only the souls of Akuma, so I really don't know. But the souls of Akuma can't be saved unless they are killed by an exorcist, so I've never quite been able to convince myself that the humans killed by Akuma, even the completely innocent ones caught in the crossfire, simply find their way to Heaven. I always hope that if I can pray for them, it might help lead them home."

"Che, make it quick," I told him, surprising even myself that I didn't just insist we go. As he placed his palms together and bowed his head, I turned my eyes away. For some reason I couldn't understand, I didn't want to see the tears spill over onto Moyashi's pale cheeks and trace the path of his scar. Lupin, who had watched our exchange in silence, gave me a strange look. I glanced away from him too.

Finally, Moyashi finished and wiped at the moisture on his face, leaving spots on his white gloves. We left the house in silence. Moyashi caught Timcampy from where he had been fluttering worriedly near his head, and spoke to him softly for a moment before sending him off into the night. He stood and watched until the golumn shrunk to a golden pinprick against the sky and then vanished among the stars. I didn't even put up a fight when we had to apparate back to Hogwarts; I felt like it would be wrong for some reason I couldn't explain. Che, I didn't like it when I couldn't explain things.

On the grounds, the lake still rippled in small waves, but the breeze had changed direction and blew in cold off of the mountains. I thought about what Moyashi had said the entire way up to the castle and back to my room. I hadn't ever considered that, but, as much as he cared far too much about everyone, the idea made some sense. What if the Akuma passed on some of their curse to not reach whatever resting place they believed in onto the people they killed. I found my mind wandering to the image of Moyashi leaning over the remains; he had created an Akuma, and was cursed on top of it. Would he ever reach his heaven? And why the hell did I care?

I barely roused myself from my thoughts to bark the password at the tapestry before my room. I abandoned the thought of meditation and fell into bed, exorcist uniform, boots, Mugen and all. The last thing I remember before falling asleep was that image of Moyashi, and wondering why the tears at the corners of his eyes had bothered me.

* * *

A/N: I just love Lupin, so I felt the need to throw him in, even if it is a kind of small appearance. While I was writing this chapter, "Butterfly" by Trish Truy Trang came on my iTunes shuffle… twice. Oh the irony… I hoped you liked the first shift in Kanda's attitude toward our Moyashi. It ended up a lot more tender (tender for Kanda at least) at the end than I was expecting. Just goes to show that sometimes stories have minds of their own.


	7. In Trouble

CH7

A/N: Happy Easter everyone! Look what the Black Order Easter Bunny (probably Lavi Usagi forced into the costume) brought you: a nice new chapter. And, no, I didn't time it this way on purpose.

Fill in standard disclaimers here.

* * *

**Kanda POV**

I woke up pissed off on the last day of my first week of Hogwarts hell because of some dream I couldn't remember. At first I was just confused because I knew it had to do with Moyashi and some weird feelings I couldn't place. It wasn't the first time either. Since we got called out, Moyashi had been randomly appearing in my thoughts and dreams far too much for comfort. As I pointlessly wracked my brain for the details, I grew more and more annoyed until I growled a few curses, grabbed Mugen from beside me and stalked out into the front room. I yanked the door open so hard that the tapestry on the outside set up a loud series of protests as I left. I ignored it and prowled toward the entrance hall surrounded in such a dark aura that if any students were awake at this hour, they might have dropped dead as I passed.

I slammed the front doors of the castle shut behind me, satisfied by the resounding boom left hanging in the air. I felt even more satisfied thinking of how many people I had just startled out of bed. I grumbled at having to leave my favorite practice spot behind, but I was too damn tired of being stared at. It hadn't relented all week. I headed for the forest instead. Whatever was in there better be scared of me instead of the other way around. A proper fight would improve my mood. If worst came to worst, I could blindfold myself to make things more interesting.

Actually, I figured I should just do that anyway. It was good training for my other senses. I pulled a spare piece of bandaging from the pocket of my coat (I always kept some on me just in case) and tied it over my eyes. I drew Mugen and began to move through the darkened forest.

An hour later, I emerged from the trees and pulled off the blindfold, blinking in the sudden rush of sunlight. I cursed my inner clock for telling me to stop in time to eat breakfast and get to my class. I would have been perfectly satisfied to let the whole school think I got lost in the forest all day.

All the way back to the castle and through breakfast, I tried to prepare myself for the mental torture of teaching students. My prediction of them having little to no experience had come true, much to my displeasure. I had spent the majority of the week teaching the little idiots how to make a proper fist and throw a single punch without breaking every fucking bone in their hands. The ones that could throw a punch were obviously brawlers. Brawlers piss me off. They're always so sloppy, relying on only brute force. Meaning I had to start from goddamn square one with them too. Just the thought of it made my temper rise. And I didn't expect today to be much better.

There were only two good things about today: I got the Moyashi to show me the kitchens, so I would finally get my soba; and by the end of today, I would have gotten to every student in the school. Which meant next week, I was not showing one more brat how to make a fist. They could break their knuckles at this point for all I cared.

I studiously avoided meeting Moyashi's eyes as I walked through the Great Hall. I was calm after my exercises, and I didn't want that to be wrecked by that weird swarm of emotions again. Instead my gaze found his three new friends for a moment. They would be in my last class of the day. _Last class_. That had a beautiful ring to it. I headed for the teacher's table and my awaiting soba, thinking that if I could refrain from killing one of these brats until then, I'd be free for a whole weekend. Fucking finally.

'Last class' had become my mantra all day, getting me through the dragging hours of idiot students. Now as I watched them file out from the castle (I had given up on the classroom. They knew where to find me) I could almost taste the freedom. One more hour, just one more horrible hour.

"Get in line," I growled, my temper stretched thin, like it was by the end of every day. These were fifth years, so they weren't nearly as terrified as the younger classes, but they still did as they were told. "Anyone who has ever fought before, forget every damn thing you know; whatever it is, it's wrong."

This got a response. They weren't used to teachers cussing, even a mild one like damn. But they were fifth years, so I wasn't going to bother watching my language. I surprised myself by actually refraining with the younger students. I wondered how long that would last. Probably not long.

"But we win lots of fights," said one large, lumbering boy. I pegged him for a brawler in an instant.

"I don't care," I snapped at him. "You're here to learn technique, not how to wail on each other mindlessly with your fists. If you want fight stupid, fine, have the fucking time of your life. Just not on my time." I crossed my arms.

"I don't even know why we have to learn this ridiculous stuff," remarked the boy next to the one who had spoken. He had platinum blond hair of such a light shade it was almost the same color as Moyashi's. It didn't suit him like Moyashi's did though; this kid looked completely washed out. "It's not magic, and we're at a school for _magic_. It's completely pointless when we can defeat any opponent with a spell."

"I don't want to be here any more than you do," I informed him. I couldn't resist needling him though. "But what if you got separated from your wand? I know exactly what; you'd be fucked."

"Well I didn't come here just to be taught some stupid punches by an idiot teacher, and a rude one too."

"Even though I don't want this position, I still have it, and that means you owe me proper respect." I noticed at this point that the rest of the class had backed away a few steps, leaving blondie and I to face off. "Get back in line!" I snapped, whirling to face them. They practically fell over each other to form up again. I turned back to the blond bastard. "You too," I ordered before going to the front of the class and ignoring him as I began my instruction.

As the students were practicing, I noticed that the kid was whispering to his bully boys. They looked rather like Skin Bolic, and I imagined that combined they might have half his IQ. I scowled and started to stalk over there, ready to order them back to their exercises when I caught my name.

"Who does this _Professor _Kanda think he is?_ Respect_. That's a laugh. What sort of respect do I owe a Hogwarts teacher who won't even teach magic? I bet he can't. I bet he's just a filthy squib." The insult might have bothered me if I either knew what it meant or gave a shit. But this brat was still getting on my nerves. "If you don't have pure magical blood, you're a worthless weakling. I doubt he could beat me if I had my hands tied behind my back. I don't think he can even use that sword he carries around like it's something to actually be proud of. It's a disgrace, that's what."

I hit the boiling point I had been on the edge of reaching all day. If he was going to call me weak and question my skill with Mugen, perhaps he needed a little demonstration. I had Mugen out and resting at the base of his neck before he could even take his next breath. "Say that again, to my face," I offered, my voice gone deadly still and calm. The chill radiating off me caused the other students to back away again. The bastard was stuck however, afraid that if he moved I would cut his throat. He gulped visibly and shook his head a fraction to either side. "Maybe I should leave a mark so you'll remember not to fuck with me again." I let him stew with that thought for a moment. Then I lowered Mugen with agonizing slowness, leaving him wondering if I was actually going to let him go, or simply pick another spot to impale him.

The boy found his balls again once Mugen wasn't pointing at him anymore. "I'll report you to my father!" he shouted, backing away as he did. "I'll get you kicked out of this school, and your stupid Order!"

"Try," I said smugly. "I don't want to teach, so if you get me kicked out of this school, you'd be doing me a favor. As for the Order, they don't answer to your bastard of a father. You're fucking powerless."

The kid seemed even more disturbed at this last claim than anything else. He turned tail and ran for the school. I smirked, in a better mood for the little face off. I knew I would get hell for it later, but it was so fucking worth it.

**Allen POV**

I made my way through classes half in a sulky daze. I had gotten a notice earlier that week that Harry and I would be serving detention tonight with Umbridge. What a way to end the week. At least I would have some company to commiserate with.

Dinner would have most likely been a silent affair, so I was glad when Timcampy intercepted me only feet before I reached the Great Hall and started tugging on my hair. Since he was back, I knew he would have a message from Komui. I made my excuses to Harry, Ron and Hermione and looked for somewhere I could watch the message in private.

I closed the door of one of the empty classrooms off the main hallway and perched on the edge of a desk after wiping away the dust. "Playback Tim," I told the golem who had been fluttering in circles around my head. He came to a stop and opened his mouth to project an image of Komui in his messy office. The place hadn't improved in cleanliness since we left, but the supervisor didn't look too much more tired than usual. This may have had something to do with the several empty coffee cups scattered around the desk in front of him.

"Hello Allen-kun, and Kanda-kun if you are listening too," Komui greeted. He was wearing his serious face. "I reviewed Tim's footage of the attack the two of you investigated. It is worrying that Voldemort is moving so quickly. From our information, he has not been awakened as a Noah for more than a handful of months. From the fact that he is in possession of Akuma, level ones for sure and potentially level twos, we know that he has already been in contact with the Earl and received some amount of support. Unfortunately, we can't make an accurate prediction about how much support he has, or where this new Noah could factor into the Earl's plans.

"On the up side, we have been studying files provided by Dumbledore on Voldemort's last rise to power. His Noah genes were still latent at the time, but we believe he will still act much the same, and with similar motives, so we can use this to predict his movements. In the past, he took his time gathering a large following before setting out on a massive fear campaign while eliminating his opponents at the same time. At the moment, Voldemort is not trying to make his attacks known to the general public, so we think he is starting from the bottom up again and putting together his army, but this time with both wizards and Akuma. The victims of this attack had no connection with the wizarding world, and posed no threat to Voldemort. That would indicate the motive behind it was to make his Akuma more powerful. Prepare yourself for more attacks of this sort in the near future."

I clenched my hands on the edge of the desk. I knew that the Earl was always staging attacks to level up his Akuma. However, it was one thing to be able to shove the unpleasant knowledge into the back of my mind, and completely another to have to confront it and know I would be called in to investigate many of these attacks.

The message continued playing. "Once Voldemort comes out into the open and begins using his usual signs to alert the wizarding world to his return, you may take this as an indication that he is about to move. We will have finders on alert for these signs as well.

"As a warning, I won't be able to contact you much in the near future. The Vatican has sent and Inspector to deal with the Ark incident, and he is very suspicious about the Musician. We suspect this man doesn't mean you well. We're all currently under scrutiny, especially for sending the two of you out on another mission, so it would be best if you didn't send Timcampy back any more than necessary. I believe Lavi and my precious Lenalee will continue to communicate with you through that awful owl, but Tim is a bit to conspicuous. Good luck." Komui saluted, and then the screen went black.

I sighed. Why couldn't my life be simple for once? I hoped no one back at the Order was in too much trouble because of me. I checked the clock and hurried out, planning to make a quick stop at the kitchens before heading to Professor Umbridge's classroom for detention.

I emerged from behind the painting of the bowl of fruit with my stomach relatively full and my bag packed with snacks for later. I would have liked to eat more, but I would be late for detention if I stayed longer. I doubted that would go over well.

I was just coming up the staircase into the entrance hall when I heard my name called. Harry waved me over to where the three were standing near the front doors. "So where exactly did you run off to during dinner? I didn't think you would ever miss a meal."

"I had an important message," I told him, smiling slightly at his teasing. "I got food from the house elves after."

"You shouldn't take advantage of them like that," Hermione scolded. "They work night and day to prepare food for our meals alone, much less having to make something later for just one student. It's rude to inconvenience them just because you couldn't make it to a meal."

"Don't listen to her, Allen," Ron told me. "She's been on about this stupid spew thing all day."

"I've told you a million times," she rounded on Ron, "It's the Society for the Protection of Elfish Welfare, S.P.E.W, not spew. And this is why S.P.E.W. is necessary! To educate people on how wizards treat house elves."

I shrugged. "They always seem happy to see me, especially because I can eat so much of their cooking. From what I can tell, they think cooking is fun. They're kind of like Jerry, the Order's cook, that way."

"We've been trying to tell her the same thing all day," Ron mentioned.

"I bet your cook is paid though," Hermione cut in.

"Nope. No one at the Order receives any kind of salary. They do cover necessary expenses though."

"Wow, that's harsh. On another note, you probably didn't hear the news since you weren't at dinner."

"No, what is it?" I asked.

"Professor Kanda nearly decapitated Draco Malfoy today," Ron offered.

"The man is my idol," Harry said dreamily.

"Bakanda," I muttered under my breath. "Did he really? Actually, no don't answer that, I know he would. I'll talk to him about it later."

"I get the feeling Professor McGonagall might get there first. Last year fake-Moody turned Malfoy into a ferret. She scolded him about that. It's too bad too," Harry remarked. He checked his watch and rounded on Ron. "Don't you have to get down to the Quidditch field for tryouts?"

Ron turned just a bit green and mumbled something like an affirmative. He and Hermione turned to the doors and I followed Harry toward Umbridge's room. He would be less likely to get lost.

As we approached the classroom, I worked on putting my perfect polite mask in place. No need to let her know I was unhappy to be there. If this was a game of poker, that would be like letting her win. Harry obviously didn't have a polite mask, as he appeared to get more annoyed the closer we got. He knocked on the door with rather more force than necessary once we arrived.

"Come in," called Umbridge's sickly sweet voice from somewhere inside.

"Good evening Professor Umbridge," I told her as formally as I could. Harry didn't greet her.

"Good evening Mr. Walker, Mr. Potter. You two will be doing lines." She positioned us at two different desks on the opposite sides of the classroom and gave us paper and a quill. I scowled at the writing instrument; I still hadn't quite gotten the knack of the things. "I want you to write, 'I must not tell lies.'"

"Professor, you haven't given us any ink," Harry pointed out the detail I missed, being used to pens that came with the ink in them.

"Oh, you won't be needing any," she replied. I just assumed these were more like normal pens, but Harry looked confused.

I put the quill to the paper, and started to write 'I will not tell lies,' fully expecting black ink to flow from the tip. Instead, it only left indentations where the quill scratched the paper. I scribbled the quill back and forth, expecting the ink to start flowing. When it didn't I raised my hand and said, "Professor, I think my quill is broken or out of ink."

She came over and looked at my paper. "This quill doesn't have, or require ink," she told me. But she took the quill anyway and traded it with Harry's. "See if this one works." I tried to write again, expecting it to work this time, because I could see a bit of red ink on Harry's paper from where I was sitting.

Umbridge's face contorted into a scowl, which deepened the more I scratched at the paper unsuccessfully. She suddenly snatched the quill back and began waving her wand over it, murmuring a spell. "There, that should work now." She handed it back, her fake smile back in place.

None of us were prepared for what happened. The moment I touched the quill to the paper, it went up in a burst of green flames. They died a second later, leaving the ashes of the feather to drift slowly and settle on my blank paper. Harry had stopped writing and was staring at the spot where the quill had been in shock. I coughed from the ash and blinked the light-spots from my vision. When it cleared, I could see Umbridge looked just as, if not more, shocked.

She shook her pink-bow-adorned head as if to clear it, and then stared at me with barely contained rage in her eyes. "UP!" she shouted. "WE'RE GOING TO SEE YOUR HEAD OF HOUSE THIS INSTANT!" I stood, wondering just what had happened, and why she was quite that angry. "And you," she turned to Harry, "keep writing until I get back. If you don't I'll give you two more detentions." I looked back in time to see Harry nod reluctantly. Before the door swung shut, I caught sight of Harry's left hand; there was a suspiciously blood-like red on the back of it, in what looked like the shape of letters.

Umbridge marched me from the classroom down hallways and up stairs until we were standing before a door bearing a plaque that read "Minerva McGonagall, Deputy Headmistress." She was so angry, that she burst into the room without knocking. To my surprise, Kanda was in the room, seated in one of the chairs, arms crossed and looking pissed.

Professor McGonagall looked at Umbridge with one eyebrow raised. "Was there something you needed Dolores? As you can see, I was already in the middle of a meeting, so if it isn't urgent..."

Umbridge cut her off. "Yes, it is urgent Minerva! It concerns the discipline of one of the students in your house. Mr. Walker has been using magic to avoid a rightfully earned detention." I stared at the frog woman, surprised and confused. I hadn't done any magic; I barely could even do it at all at this point.

Now both of McGonagall's eyebrows were raised. "That is difficult to believe. Mr. Walker has only been a student for a week. I believe the only spell he should know by now is Wingardium Leviosa, which seems rather harmless. What exactly did he do?" I could hear a note of well-concealed dislike for Umbridge in her voice.

The other teacher paused for a moment, as if she didn't want to answer the question. She finally said, "I gave him lines and he set the quill on fire."

McGonagall looked at me and asked, "Did you light a quill on fire?" I shook my head. Umbridge started turning red. McGonagall appeased her by saying, "we can check easily to see if he is telling the truth. Mr. Walker, would you please give me your wand?" I handed it to her, and she placed it tip-to-tip with her own before saying "Priori Incantatum." The ghost of a feather rising in the air appeared; we had been practicing levitation in charms just earlier that day in charms. "See Dolores, he is innocent. I don't know why your quill caught on fire, but Mr. Walker was not the cause. Now that that little matter is cleared up, I would like to continue my meeting. Good evening."

Umbridge turned bright red and her mouth opened and closed a few times like a fish before she turned on the heel of her pink shoes and stalked from the room. I started to leave as well, expecting the dismissal extended to me too, but McGonagall motioned to the other seat before her desk. I took it and she regarded me for a moment before asking, "Do you have any idea what happened?"

I started to shake my head, but at that moment, it clicked in my mind that the red on the back of Harry's hand was the same red as the ink on his paper. "I think those quills she gave us write in blood," I blurted.

McGonagall's eyebrows raised again. "Are you sure Mr. Walker? Quills enchanted to write in blood are not permitted within this school, so that is a fairly serious accusation."

I nodded and explained the red on Harry's hand and paper. "It was on his left hand, so I guess it cuts whichever hand isn't dominant. I have to write with my right hand because of the innocence I use as an exorcist," I flexed the fingers in my glove out of habit and hoped Dumbledore had told McGonagall enough about exorcists that she could follow. "There are very few things that cut innocence, so the quill didn't work. Umbridge cast a spell, and I don't think my innocence liked it, because the quill caught on fire."

"If what you say is true, this innocence causes some very strange phenomenon. However, if you didn't consciously set Professor Umbridge's quill on fire, I cannot punish you for it. We don't punish young wizards for losing control of their magic, so I will treat this as much the same circumstance." Her eyes then flicked toward Kanda and she sighed. "Mr. Kanda, I highly doubt you will take this to heart, but please try to refrain from threatening a student with a sword again. You both may leave."

Kanda was out of the room in a swirl of his exorcist coat in an instant. I got up to follow at a more subdued pace, but McGonagall interrupted me once again. "One more thing before you leave Mr. Walker. Both you and Professor Kanda are only here on Dumbledore's jurisdiction, so it would be best if you didn't make an enemy of Professor Umbridge since she holds power with the Ministry of Magic."

"I will try not to. Goodnight Professor McGonagall," I told her with a slight bow. I closed her office door behind me before looking first one way down the corridor then the other and wondering just how I was supposed to get back to Gryffindor tower from here.

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A/N: Goddamnit! *Rips out hair* Writing Kanda is fucking hard! I have no music for him! And sadly I realize this probably sounds more like Kanda than my Kanda.

*Cough* Now that that's out of my system… remember, reviews feed all those lovely plot bunnies. Not to mention they keep the author motivated ;).


	8. Marionette

CH 8

A/N: Once again, Allen's part was easy, Kanda's not so much. It didn't help that I have discovered the wonders of tumblr… It's a time suck, an entertaining time suck, yes, but it makes procrastination/distraction that much easier.

Warning- Angst; stream-of-consciousness style writing

Disclaimer: oh, you know it all already

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**Allen's POV**

Life had never felt so slow as when I was at Hogwarts. Hours faded into days, which blurred into weeks. For so long, I had lived from one moment to the next, always fighting Akuma or en route to another battle. That sort of life was quick, and exciting, and full of adrenaline; it was also tiring, and sometimes frightening, and all too often full of sorrows but never any time to mourn the losses. For the first time I could remember since I joined the Black Order, perhaps even since Mana died, because life with Master Cross couldn't exactly be called relaxing, I could stop and just take a moment to breathe. I didn't have to constantly fear for my life or the lives of my friends. I felt bad for not worrying more about Lavi and Lenalee and everyone still at the Order, but here I was safe and so were the people around me. There weren't days when you would walk into a room and have to face the empty chairs and missing faces. I hate to admit that sometimes I felt jealous of those whose whole world was this slow, calm, safe place.

I knew it was just a reprieve, only a temporary pause, like sitting in the eye of a hurricane. After all, my world was at war, and this world teetered on its brink. I couldn't stay here in this limbo forever; my fate was to keep walking, until I was dead or the Millennium Earl was. I knew that eventually something would tip the balance and shatter this false peace.

Although, I never would have guessed how much more time it left for me to think.

Once I became accustomed enough to homework that it didn't take all my free time, my mind could wander much more than ever before. I also found I had a hard time sitting still, and getting used to the notion of staying in one place and being inactive didn't come easily. I began going off and wandering the school on my own just to feel like I was moving, usually getting very lost in the process. The mindless activity left plenty of extra room for thoughts. At first, everything was a jumbled mess of all the thoughts and emotions that had just been waiting until my mind wasn't always so full to present themselves. Eventually things began to resolve into clearer individual images. All together, they formed a picture of violence, loss, and betrayal, which I wasn't emotionally ready to confront. However, they weren't willing to leave me alone and let me hide from the harsh realities of my world. The end of September found me with a severe case of the blues, perhaps even borderline depression. It was a bad place. Last time it led me straight to the Millennium Earl.

Every time my mind was free, I could see the faces of the dead. So many. Many of the dead I hadn't known very well; people I'd only seen and greeted in passing in the Order's halls or while waiting in line in the dining room. Yet, they were still our fallen comrades, and painful enough to think of. Others were worse. I hated to think of exorcists killed in battle. How easily we chosen ones of god fell; it made me wonder if the world could even be saved. Soman Dark also haunted me particularly; I rescued him only to see him killed when he should have had a chance to live. All the people who died on the way to Japan too. If I hadn't failed to reform my innocence for so long, if only I had returned earlier, they might still be alive. Then there was Mana. I had thought I was mostly over his death, or at least able to keep it in check, because that sort of grief never fully leaves us, but then _his_ secret language showed up on that Ark…

While I couldn't hide from the thoughts, I could hide from people. They didn't need to be poisoned by the horrible aura that I suspected hung around me like a dark cloud. One of the advantages of repeatedly getting lost was I found many of the secluded, dusty, abandoned places in the school. These became my refuges when I wasn't in class. I even stopped going to the Great Hall for meals, instead sneaking into the kitchens if I felt hungry. The house elves in particular seemed worried because I wasn't eating as much as usual.

One Sunday afternoon found me hidden in the shadows of an old alcove in one of the hardly frequented parts of the castle. It was far enough from the in-use classrooms, house dorms, and Great Hall that people didn't bother venturing out here often.

Across the hall from my hiding spot was a window that looked out onto a small courtyard. I watched the leaves on the single, gnarled tree shaking in the wind through the glass, which was warped and rippling with age. I felt numb inside, like the wide expanse of gray sky. I buried my head in my knees so I wouldn't have to see that sky.

My thoughts that day were on the war in general. What was the point? So much bloodshed, loss, and pain, yet there seemed to be almost no progress despite all our efforts, despite all the lives sacrificed. I had thought fighting for the Black Order would allow me the chance to be a destroyer who saves. But what had I saved? Could it ever equal that which I hadn't? And why should I be one lucky enough to live on when so many others had died? I didn't think I deserved so many near misses and second chances.

I glanced up at the window again; this time there was a human figure, a black thing that swallowed up my reflection, and at the same time was my reflection. It wore a wide grin, demented both in nature and by the rippled distortion of the glass. It had reappeared around the same time as my unsettled emotions. I could tell it delighted in my depression, feasted on my hopelessness. I could feel it creeping slowly into my soul.

The eye contact that pulled me into its darkness was broken as I heard the sound of feet from the other end of the corridor. My eyes snapped up toward the noise, and I pressed myself further into the alcove. Whoever it was would have a hard time seeing me in the already dark spot, and made almost black as the last of the natural light died and the skies opened up. Within seconds, the leaves on the tree were soaked and drooping under the onslaught.

I held my breath and tried to imagine myself sinking into the shadows. If I stayed still enough they wouldn't see me.

"It shows him down here," said a slightly-out-of-breath female voice, "why would he be down here?"

I cursed as I recognized the voice, and tensed to try to run, but they rounded the corner before I had the chance. The three were staring intently at a piece of old paper clutched in hands I could identify as Harry's from the mop of messy black hair sticking out over the top. He lowered the paper, tapped it with his wand and muttered something before putting it back in his pocket. All three began scanning the corridor, and I knew I was in for it. No matter how dark, if they were looking for me my white hair would stand out like a sore thumb.

Then hands were gripping mine, pulling me from my hiding spot and forcing me to stand or fall off the bench. I glared at the three worried expressions, but didn't say anything. I didn't know what would come out of my mouth, but it would most definitely be rude. I wasn't supposed to be rude; I made a special exception for Kanda.

"Where have you been all this time? We haven't seen you in the Great Hall for days," Harry asked.

"You had us seriously worried there mate," Ron put in. "Thought you might have disappeared into the forbidden forest or something." He shuddered a bit, and I guessed there was something that really scared him in that forest.

"We're so sorry Allen!" Said Hermione; I could see extra moisture gathering in her eyes. "I feel like such a terrible friend! We should have come looking for you sooner, but there was all the homework, and we're so used to it just being the three of us, that we didn't even realize until now."

Since she felt guilty, it would cause the tears to come, I knew it. I gave a mental sigh and plastered on my polite mask. "No, I'm sorry for making you worry Hermione. I'm not used to be surrounded by so many people all the time, so I just came out here for a little peace and quiet," I lied.

Ron and Harry looked satisfied with this explanation, but not Hermione. She scrutinized my face for a moment, before saying, "I'm not sure I believe that. Are you alright? You look like you've lost weight."

"Really, I'm fine," I falsely reassured her.

"If you say so," she said, a hint of doubt in her voice.

"I'm sorry I made you come all the way out here and kept you from your studies," I remarked, putting a subtle hint in my tone that maybe they should get back to them. Then they could leave me alone. I could feel the dark aura creeping up again. I was sure they'd be able to feel it any minute. I didn't want them to spend all day out of sorts because I'd leaked my mood.

"Bloody hell no," Ron replied, "I wish she'd let us go looking before. I'd do anything to get a break from all that."

"Wouldn't let us get out the Marauder's Map until we'd finished everything, including an awful essay for Snape," Harry added. "You should come back to the common room with us. We could teach you to play wizard chess or exploding snap."

Another mental sigh. I didn't think I'd be getting out of this one, which meant I'd be leaking my bad mood to everyone in the common room. There would be more people there than usual today because of the rain.

For once, I did a bit of worrying about myself as well. I wasn't sure if I could handle all those happy faces, faces that had never known the same level of loss. I tried not to begrudge them their happiness, but it still did make me feel bitter.

I dragged my feet half-heartedly behind the three of them as they led me back to the common room. If it were just me making my way up to Gryffindor Tower, I would have surely taken a few wrong turns, maybe even some on purpose, and arrived rather late that night. Instead, when we approached the portrait hole, it wasn't even near dinnertime, meaning I'd probably have to sit through the meal too.

Just as we were approaching the fat Lady and I was considering trying to make a break for it, I got an idea. Maybe if I could bring out my other side, I could keep the thoughts at bay for a while. After all, when I played a game, I thought of nothing but winning.

The trio took over a table close to the fireplace, and Harry moved toward the boys' stairs to go find his chess set. I stopped him by saying, "Actually I was thinking maybe I could teach you one of my favorite games."

Harry shrugged and returned to the table while I scurried up to my dorm and fetched a pack of cards, as well as some candy to use as game chips. The deck of cards hadn't been opened yet, since I hadn't had a chance to play since that day on the train with Crowly and Tiki Mikk. The cards were a present the science team gave me when they learned my last set was scattered all over a bamboo forest somewhere in China. I can't say I was sad to see that deck go. I shook off the thought, determined to let my card shark side take over and think of nothing but the game.

The eyes of the three widened quite a lot when they saw my candy stash in my arms. It was quite impressive, since I had stocked up for midnight snacks right before my appetite went downhill. I dumped it all out on the table and broke open the seal on the deck of cards, telling them, "I brought enough for all of us. I usually play for money, or strip Poker, but I didn't think you guys would go for that."

Ron shook his head, "I still have no idea how you can say such weird stuff with a straight face. I don't know what 'Poker' is, but I have a bad feeling about 'strip.'"

"Which I why we're playing for candy," I reminded him, feeling my evil Poker grin just straining to come out. I think they might have noticed it a bit, because they started looking slightly alarmed.

Yet, they thought they actually stood a chance of possibly winning some of the candy I portioned out between us as game chips. I could tell from the hopeful looks on their faces at the sight of their mounds. My dark poker side delighted in turning that into disappointment when, by the end of the night, it was all piled in front of me again. Even after dinner, they had insisted on continuing the game.

At this point, Ron gave a fake yawn and said, "I should really get to sleep; you know, get rested for class tomorrow."

I didn't believe him for an instant, but his attempt made me laugh. I picked out a chocolate bar and tossed it to him. "You haven't had muggle candy before, right?" I handed a piece each over to Harry and Hermione just to be fair.

They thanked me before Hermione really did plead exhaustion. I'd gotten a glimpse of her class schedule before, so I believed it. That seemed to be the signal to break, because the boys headed for the stairs too. I followed, not wanting to be in the common room, which was still relatively full. I could feel all the bad thoughts poking around at the edges of my mind now that the game was over and my distraction gone.

I quickly changed and drew the curtains around my bed, collapsing into the pillows. I felt particularly drained from having to keep up a good face, even if most of it was my poker side. I was only able to achieve a light sleep interrupted with fitful dreams. In the only one I remembered, I was a puppet on strings performing for a group of Akuma and Noahs. The Akuma jeered and waved their weapons in the air in such staggering numbers my heart began to race with fear and adrenaline. The Earl was at the very front, wearing his trademark demented grin, but there was hunger in his eyes. "Good, yes, good," he said, "Soon our family will be whole again." He looked up above me, and I followed his gaze to see that my puppeteer was none other than the specter shadow. I could swear his shadows were darker, and his features had begun to become more defined. Then the Earl began to laugh, and I woke with a start, the discordant sound filling the room, stifling me. It was chased off by the sound of a knock followed by voices calling for me to come out and go to breakfast or they would drag me bodily. I figured I should comply, but the moment I moved my limbs burst into pins and needles as if they had fallen asleep. However, I knew with a fearful certainty that it was not because I had slept in a weird position, but that I really hadn't been in control of my own body, just like that puppet, trapped up on the wires. My mind felt strangely fuzzy; I could barely keep two coherent thoughts together, and it seemed to be getting worse.

**Kanda's POV**

Mondays suck and I was sure this one in particular was out to get me. It was raining, a sure sign from the universe that it would be a crappy day. I had to find a large, unused classroom big enough for practice, and even then I wasted time moving desks out of the way. I worked half way through breakfast just to get some practice, so by the time I entered the great hall, the entire school was there and intent on gawking, and the only seat I could see open at the teacher's table was next to Umbridge. Great, just fucking great.

The next thing I noticed was a spot of white bright against the heads of brown, black and red hair. Just who did the brat think he was, disappearing from the Great Hall the whole previous week? I stalked down the aisle between the tables ready to go chew him out. I reached where he was sitting, but was shocked to see he was only eating one regular-sized plate of food, and he looked like he had lost weight. He wouldn't meet the eyes of his friends who were trying to engage him in the conversation. Through the white bangs covering his face, I could see that his expression was _blank_; not like his polite face, which was a mannered façade masking his true thoughts, but completely drained and emotionless. I was so shocked and confused that I walked right past without saying anything to him.

I sat at the teacher's table, thinking _what the hell?_ I barely even registered the annoying presence of the frog woman. My confusion only increased when, moments later, Moyashi simply got up and left without eating seconds.

He was also almost late for class. I wondered just where he went in between leaving the Great Hall early and slipping into the classroom as the bell rang, and why. I lead the class to the practice space I'd cleared that morning, set Moyashi a new set of exercises, and directed my attention to the other idiotic students. But my attention didn't stay there for long, because over in the corner one white-haired exorcist was moving halfheartedly through his pattern. I knew the simple stuff annoyed him, something I had taken pleasure in on several occasions, but he still put some effort into it.

Although, that wasn't what freaked me out. His usual circus brat grace was gone. Instead, his movements were stiff and awkward, as if he didn't know how to control his limbs anymore. I repeat myself, _what the hell?_

"Moyashi!" I barked, startling him a bit. "Put some more goddamn effort into it!" So much for not cussing around the younger students. I expected him to get pissed about that. He does have ideas about when it's not appropriate to cuss and shit like that. But instead, when he looked up, he still had that blank look on his face. I hadn't seen his eyes before, but now I could see they were dead, just as blank as the rest of his face. It was fucking creepy, like looking at some sort of zombie. He nodded stiffly and went back to his practice. He seemed to be trying a bit more, but not much and his movements were still gawky and weird.

I snapped at him several more times about his form. I had seen him do similar stuff in the past with little trouble. Just what the fuck was going on? And he never reacted when I corrected him. By now he would usually be steaming, but, in the end, I was the one who lost my temper. The less reaction he gave, the more annoyed I got until I growled, "Detention! Right here, after your last class. You need more fucking practice." Well, would you look at that, I gave my first detention and taught my class a lovely new word, all in the same day. I would probably get shit from McGonagall about that second one later. Yes, this Monday was really out to get me.

I spent the rest of my classes nearly as spacey as him. I was trying to figure out just what had happened to the sprout to make him like this, and more importantly, how to get a reaction out of him. His typical too optimistic and polite personality usually pissed me off, but just dropping it and taking on this whole weird given-up thing was even worse. I would wipe that blank look off his face if, to use an annoying cliché 'it's the last thing I do.' Of course, getting him angry could work. I'd probably be pissed off enough, scratch that, definitely pissed off enough, to fight with him. Although judging by earlier, it would be hard to do. I'd just have to find the right buttons to push. I'm usually good at that.

I shooed my last class out the moment the hour was up and then leaned against the wall, foot tapping and one hand resting on Mugen. It really was a shame I couldn't use him; perhaps a real threat would get Moyashi to put his heart into it. But innocence on innocence usually resulted in damage, which would lead to him being sent back for repairs. I'd be stuck here to suffer while the stupid bean sprout got to go back to the normal(ish) world.

He walked stiffly into the classroom ten minutes later, just when I was starting to get impatient. He stopped suddenly in the dead center of the classroom, eyes staring forward but not seeming to see anything or register my presence. I was tempted to knock on his head and ask if there was anyone home.

I laid Mugen down, not without a hint of regret, on the desk and went to stand in front of Moyashi. His eyes looked right through me. I snapped my fingers under his nose, trying to get some sign that he actually was in there and not sleep walking or some shit like that. His eyes focused momentarily on my hand, but it faded out just as fast. I could feel my temper meter rising.

"Hand to hand, sprout, maybe that will motivate you. Get in position."

He stepped into a weak stance and raised his arms. "Ready," he said, the first word I'd heard from him all day. His voice was raspy, almost like he was getting sick. Under that, the tone was off. Slightly, not enough for most people to hear through the hoarseness, but I heard it.

I came at him with a quick series of blows, looking more for a reaction rather than to land one. He was defending himself, but just barely. He blocked the punches, but made no other movements. "I was right about you being weak, Moyashi. You can't even retaliate. You're a pathetic excuse for an exorcist."

Normally this would have gotten him fuming, but once again, there was no sign he had even heard me.

"Or maybe you're just too short, too much of a bean sprout to make your own attacks," I taunted. This also didn't work. I decided I needed to up the ante, go after stuff he actually cared about.

"What about being a destroyer that saves, and all that shit, hm? I never actually believed you could do it. You've just proven my point," I snarled, my temper still on the rise. I could feel my eye start to twitch, and if I hadn't been using my hands to attack, they would have been inching for Mugen's usual home on my belt. Moyashi simply put up an arm to barely block my next attack, not blinking. Come to think of it, I couldn't remember seeing him blink once since he entered. This was getting creepier by the minute.

"Didn't you promise that you'd live your life for humans and Akuma? How ridiculous." Nothing, which was bad. He really got outraged if anyone insulted his way of looking at the world or his reasons for fighting. I was starting to get this awful nagging feeling that maybe Moyashi as I knew him wasn't there. But how the hell would that happen? I felt sure it wasn't an impostor, but almost as if his mind or his soul had somehow disconnected.

"And didn't you talk about needing to keep walking? Are you just going to stop in your tracks?"

My punches and kicks flew faster, out of annoyance and desperation. There had to be some way to break his mask. He blocked each one with a jerky move; each time I tried to get him to look at me, those zombie eyes stared straight through. I growled in frustration. "Goddamn it Moyashi! You can't just give up!"

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A/N: Dun-dun-dun. How's that for a cliffy and some plot? I know no one likes a cliffy, and don't worry, I'm only doing it because I'll have some free time coming up soon and can hopefully get the next chapter out fairly quickly.

Review as always! Until next time.

Review as always! Until next time.


	9. Shadows

CH 9

A/N: Gah, so much to write, so little motivation! And so much writers block! I have slaved and slaved to get this to you on Kanda's birthday, 6.6.12 (Ok, maybe a few hours after. I did get side-tracked watching a great thunderstorm). I know, I know, I should have slaved sooner, so you can read without further preamble.

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**Kanda's POV**

Some might say that silver-gray eyes could look washed out, bland, lifeless. That description didn't cross my mind until today. Even if nothing else bothered me about Moyashi's behavior (which is impossible; a lack of response to my taunts pisses me off in any situation), those zombie eyes would have done it. They stared straight ahead without moving or blinking. Fake eyes, glass eyes, not the eyes of the Moyashi who annoyed the crap out of me.

I feinted a punch toward his right shoulder but finished with a kick to the left side. He took one jerky step aside at the last moment to avoid it.

_If only I could make him fight._

I sent a flurry of blows toward his torso.

_If only I could make him react._

He blocked the worst and passively took the rest. He'd never normally let me land a hit so easily.

_If only I could make him _blink_._

I swung my fist directly at his face; that would make him flinch if nothing else. He stood stock still, as if he knew I wouldn't actually hit him. He didn't move, he didn't blink, and his eyes didn't refocus.

I couldn't think of anything else that might cause him to react. Why goddamn it? Why was he like this? Why him of all people, who was least likely to get depressed or lose touch with the world? All his naïve and idealistic goals and perceptions seemed to keep him grounded. I dropped strategy and just attacked. No matter what moves I threw at him, no matter how many blows he blocked or took, there was no response in those eyes. I began to get angry at whatever was clouding out their usual light.

Before long, I could see red. The anger, made all the more potent by desperation, fogged my mind, senses and reason. When the next strike still elicited no response, it blazed up hot and powerful for a moment. I don't remember grabbing my sword, but Mugen was in my hand and out of his sheath in the blink of an eye. Caution blew away on the wind of fury, and I swung the sword toward the zombie-Moyashi. I realized a moment too late to stop the momentum that I was about to slice him in two. For that instant, the anger was swept away by a powerful fear, and my mind rebelled against what my own hands were about to cause.

Instead of the feel of metal shredding flesh, Mugen was met by the resistance and clang of metal intercepted by an equally strong material. Moyashi had activated Crown Clown. My moment of relief was interrupted when I noticed the eyes were just as blank as before. The weapon had self-activated to protect the wielder, but left him in the semi-conscious state. Then, he blinked.

It was as if there had been chains weighing down his limbs and they suddenly snapped. He blinked twice, and it was like a film had cleared from in front of his eyes. He lurched forward, but caught himself and came at me again, with coordinated attacks and renewed vigor. He started responding to all my taunts as if he had just heard them. "How dare you insult Mana and my reasons for fighting! Do you even have a reason other than blood lust? And my name is Allen, Bakanda," Moyashi shouted.

I stepped forward to meet him with a smirk. Now we were getting somewhere.

"Then why did you stop walking if it's so important to you, huh?" I asked, adding a taunting tone to my voice for extra annoyance.

He bristled and swung Crown Clown's claws at my head. I caught them on Mugen; he'd used that move before. Predictable. "I haven't stopped, what are you talking about? And I won't, _ever_."

"Then what have you been doing these past few days?" I asked while breaking Mugen free of Crown Clown's grip and making a counter strike, "Playing around?"

He gritted his teeth and replied, "You don't know anything."

I tried to push him back with a quick series of passes, but he held his ground. "What exactly _don't I know_? It looks like you gave up."

"I haven't."

"Then what do you call disappearing from the Great Hall every day and not eating enough?"

He blinked and I nearly cut his right arm while he was distracted. "You noticed?"

"Che, answer the question."

"But you didn't answer mine."

"That was rhetorical," I scowled, "of course I fucking noticed. Why else would I have commented on it?"

"Well _sorry_."

"You still didn't answer my earlier question. What did you think you were doing hiding away and giving up? Quitters piss me off. You signed on for the long run of this damn war, and claimed you had noble reasons for it, so don't you stop now. That would be cowardly, and I can't stand cowards."

Moyashi blinked again before smiling a bit. He didn't lower his guard though, and he didn't reply either.

"What are you smiling about?" I growled, "And answer the goddamn question!" I stepped up the pace, figuring if he wouldn't answer, I'd beat it out of him.

"You do have a heart after all," he continued, that hint of a smile just taunting me on his face.

I was dumbstruck for a moment. "What the hell do you mean by that? What have I ever done to give you that impression?"

He just kept smiling that aggravating little smile and swinging Crown Clown. I spent so much time trying to get an answer out of him for _that_ one that I completely forgot he'd never answered my earlier question. Che, I hated how he could evade a subject like that.

Eventually we stopped exchanging words at the speed of our strikes and just concentrated on sparring. Somehow it had fallen into an equal back and forth exchange. Each of us tried to get the upper hand (like I'd let him win), but it was more of a test of the other's skills than a match fueled by anger. I knew I missed fighting Akuma, but I'd always thought it was the killing, not the challenge and the chance to put my skills to use. This sparring, it was actually _enjoyable_. Che, who would have thought I could enjoy doing anything with the Moyashi?

"What the fuck got into your head today?" I asked eventually, when it seemed we were both loosing energy.

"I…in my head?" He stuttered, a strange expression crossing his face. Then he collapsed to the floor, barely avoiding loosing said body part, and clutched at his temples. "Why are you in my head?"

"I'm not in your head, idiot Moyashi," I informed him. I couldn't resist rolling my eyes for added effect, but when they came to rest on him again, he wasn't looking at me. He appeared to be staring at the floor, but his eyes were wide and unfocussed.

"Goddamn it, Moyashi, don't you go back into that fucking trance. I tried hard to get you out of it. You'd ruin all my work." The top of his white head presented a tempting target, so I smacked it with the flat of Mugen.

His eyes focused a bit more, so I could tell it wasn't the trance again. I stood still in front of him, both waiting for a response and happy to take a moment to catch my breath. The clock on the classroom wall said we'd been going at it for several hours. It was nearly dinner time. Eventually, Moyashi waved his hand absently in a universal _go away_ gesture, and ignored me, disappearing back into thought. Che, obnoxious. And to think I'd been worried.

**Allen's POV**

_"What the fuck got into your head today?"_ _Kanda asked, the curiosity in his voice overshadowing the undercurrent of venom._

With that comment, it felt as if my head was too full, splitting in half because it couldn't hold both myself and another presence. "I…in my head?" It felt dark and ugly, full of seething resentment and sorrow, exactly the feelings that took control over my world. "Why are you in my head?" The more I bent my concentration toward this foreign _thing_, the more it resolved from emotions I could easily mistake as my own into a shape and a laugh. The shadow that haunted windows and mirrors, blotted out my reflection, stood clearly in my mind's eye.

I registered Kanda saying something, and then smacking me on the head with what I assumed was Mugen. I absently waved my hand at him to go away; I was too intent on figuring out just what this _thing _was.

As if it could sense my objective, it laughed. "It's been fun Allen Walker," it cackled. The voice was creepy, too close to my own for comfort.

"Who are you? What are you doing?" I knew I was no longer speaking aloud, but speaking to the specter in my mind.

"You know exactly who I am. I am the one you saw in the piano room on the ark, 'the fourteenth.' And as for what I'm doing, why, I'm doing what I'm supposed to do, what I want to do."

"That didn't really answer either," I grumbled. If the _thing_ taking over my head hadn't done it, that would convince me I was going crazy. I'd started to complain about my own mind.

"The magic of that place confounded me for a little while, yes, but I found a way around it," he continued, in a tone that made it obvious he thought he was so clever. "And then I decided to play a little game. You like games, don't you boy?"

I glared at him and decided not to respond.

He sighed. "You're no fun. But if you're resisting now, even something small, maybe you'll try harder next time. I do like a good challenge, and that was just too easy. I'll leave you be for now. You had better be ready, though. If I get a hold of you again, I won't let go a second time." He smiled his creepy, shadow smile, laughed his creepy, mirrored laugh, and disappeared, like smoke blown away by the wind.

I sat on the floor of Kanda's classroom for a long moment after, staring at the boards but not seeing them. Had that thing actually been physically controlling me? I tried to recall my day, but it just wouldn't come. I remembered waking up from a disturbing dream to the even more disturbing notion that I hadn't been in control of my body during the night. Then, I had disappeared into the same manner of thoughts that had absorbed my mind as of late. Next thing I knew, my heart gave an extra loud, heavy beat that I had come to associate with Crown Clown activating ever since the innocence replaced the missing flesh. I could hear Kanda's taunts ringing in my ears, but all my other memories were almost gone. I could occasionally catch a blurred glimpse of hallway, anxious face, or classroom through the haze of depression, but that was only if I worked at it. Otherwise it all slipped away.

Like a seed sprouting insidious vines of thought, the fourteenth had begun to grow in my mind and my heart without my knowledge. Then he had begun to take over. I wondered just when it had started, and how long he had been lying dormant in the dark recesses of my mind. It could have been quite a while; after Mana died, I decided it was best to leave those shadowy places be. If I hadn't been so occupied with fighting for the Order, would he have taken over already? I felt it was only luck that he hadn't.

Now that the fourteenth had released his hold, the shadows slunk back to their forgotten corners. As horrible as the war was, and as awful the sorrow that came with loss, I still had reasons to fight and people who expected me to keep walking too. My goal had transformed from my personal reason to fight and somehow become something those around me relied upon. Lavi, Lenalee, Miranda, Komui, maybe even Kanda.

That was a pleasant, yet confusing surprise. Outwardly, Kanda was still his typical annoying jerk, but then he had to go and tell me out of nowhere that he wanted me to keep walking too, albeit with an attempt to cover the sentiment with a hatred for quitters and cowards. _And_ he had actually tried to break me out of the hold of the fourteenth. He could have easily just left me to my own devices. Yet in the verbal sparring match after, he had acted his normal, obnoxious self, flinging insults and cuss words, bristling and snapping.

As much as I would have like to puzzle through Kanda's confusing actions, my stomach informed me that it was an issue for another time. From what Kanda said, I hadn't been eating properly lately, and I could tell. Today I felt like I actually was that bottomless pit everyone always compared me to.

"What time is it?" I suddenly asked the swordsman, looking up to find him standing in the exact same spot.

"Che, the clock is right there," he informed me, "I assume you can read it."

Yep, same old Kanda. I was pleased to note that it was only a few minutes until dinner. It was a good thing too because the entire school could probably hear my stomach growl.

I headed for the Great Hall, a bit of extra speed in my step. I could hear footsteps, somewhat slower, following me. Kanda and I were some of the first few people to enter the hall. He headed leisurely for the front of the room while I made a beeline for the Gryffindor table. I was waiting impatiently for the food to appear on the serving dishes when Harry, Ron and Hermione joined me. I had a plate heaped and cleared before they had taken their serving

"Where have you been all afternoon?" Hermione asked, worry in her voice. She probably would be watching me extra close for a while after my recent behavior.

"Can't you… find me on… that map thing?" I countered between bites of seconds.

"We _could_," Ron said, rolling his eyes, "But 'Mione has this thing about 'no Mauraders Map while doing homework.'"

"I see your, uh, appetite has come back," Harry remarked, staring down the pile which was considerably smaller than only moments ago.

"I was sparring with Professor Kanda. It works up a good appetite," I replied and left it at that. They seemed to decide it was best to not pursue the issue farther. Several plates and many Dango later (I had to request that one special from the house elves), I felt full and content for the first time in a while.

* * *

A/N: Oh, Kanda, you will enjoy doing many other things with the Moyashi before long ;P.

This one was really hard to write. Each chapter seems harder than the last. Aren't they supposed to get easier?


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